15/11/22
As supporters will now be aware, last night Jon Underwood and Neil Baker informed the club’s board of directors of their decision to resign from the position of joint first team managers. Goalkeeping coach Trent Phillips has also decided to stand down, after being an integral part of the management team during their nine-and-a-half-year tenure.
This is truly the end of an era for our football club. Jon and Neil transformed the fortunes of the club after arriving from Godalming Town in May 2013, securing promotion from Step 4 at the first attempt with a memorable playoff final win at Kettering Town, in which the team recovered from two goals behind to win 3-2.
Following the club’s long-awaited move back to Slough, Jon and Neil’s team went from strength to strength. The 2017/18 season will live long in the memory, as the team accrued more than 100 points – scoring more than 100 goals in the process – culminating in another memorable playoff final victory at King’s Lynn Town which earnt promotion to National League South.
An unbelievable 5-4 win at Merthyr Town and a run to the Second Round of the FA Cup, which included a 6-0 First Round win at Gainsborough Trinity, are just two more highlights from that season.
The good times continued in National League South – the club narrowly missed out on the playoffs in 2018/19, but secured its first Berks & Bucks FA Senior Cup win in 38 years. Against the odds, the club qualified for the playoffs the following season, which was ended prematurely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and again reached the FA Cup Second Round where they were narrowly defeated by Gillingham at Arbour Park.
We are hugely thankful for everything that Jon, Neil and Trent have given the club, and we part ways with numerous fond memories of their time with us. We wish them every success for the future and will be following their managerial careers with interest.
Jon and Neil provided the following statement:
“Last night during a meeting with the club’s directors we announced our decision to stand down as joint managers of Slough Town FC after 9 and a half years in charge.
“As with every decision we make this is one that we discussed together at length and despite our genuine attachment to the club, those behind the scenes, our squad of players and the club’s wonderful fans we have no doubt that this is the right time for us to move on.
“Our goalkeeping coach Trent Phillips has also left the club. He has been a hugely influential part of our management team since our first day at the club and has done a brilliant job throughout.
“Most supporters will know that the club is in a difficult place financially at the moment and as managers we have done all we can to support this. We have always kept to our agreed budget and made proactive decisions to minimise spend wherever possible, but we now feel in the current climate that competing in the way we want to at this level has become incredibly difficult. We understand the need for the club to make difficult decisions as the long-term future of the club has to be the priority and we fully support this.
“Although we have now managed our last game for the club, we will continue to work with the board in the coming weeks to ensure a smooth transition and minimise any disruption.
“There are lots of people we want to thank and once the next few weeks are out of the way and the dust has settled, we’d like to find the right way to do that. For now, we want to thank everyone who has supported us since we arrived at the club in May 2013. It has been a privilege to manage this brilliant club and we leave with some incredible memories that we will keep with us forever.“
This is truly the end of an era for our football club. Jon and Neil transformed the fortunes of the club after arriving from Godalming Town in May 2013, securing promotion from Step 4 at the first attempt with a memorable playoff final win at Kettering Town, in which the team recovered from two goals behind to win 3-2.
Following the club’s long-awaited move back to Slough, Jon and Neil’s team went from strength to strength. The 2017/18 season will live long in the memory, as the team accrued more than 100 points – scoring more than 100 goals in the process – culminating in another memorable playoff final victory at King’s Lynn Town which earnt promotion to National League South.
An unbelievable 5-4 win at Merthyr Town and a run to the Second Round of the FA Cup, which included a 6-0 First Round win at Gainsborough Trinity, are just two more highlights from that season.
The good times continued in National League South – the club narrowly missed out on the playoffs in 2018/19, but secured its first Berks & Bucks FA Senior Cup win in 38 years. Against the odds, the club qualified for the playoffs the following season, which was ended prematurely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and again reached the FA Cup Second Round where they were narrowly defeated by Gillingham at Arbour Park.
We are hugely thankful for everything that Jon, Neil and Trent have given the club, and we part ways with numerous fond memories of their time with us. We wish them every success for the future and will be following their managerial careers with interest.
Jon and Neil provided the following statement:
“Last night during a meeting with the club’s directors we announced our decision to stand down as joint managers of Slough Town FC after 9 and a half years in charge.
“As with every decision we make this is one that we discussed together at length and despite our genuine attachment to the club, those behind the scenes, our squad of players and the club’s wonderful fans we have no doubt that this is the right time for us to move on.
“Our goalkeeping coach Trent Phillips has also left the club. He has been a hugely influential part of our management team since our first day at the club and has done a brilliant job throughout.
“Most supporters will know that the club is in a difficult place financially at the moment and as managers we have done all we can to support this. We have always kept to our agreed budget and made proactive decisions to minimise spend wherever possible, but we now feel in the current climate that competing in the way we want to at this level has become incredibly difficult. We understand the need for the club to make difficult decisions as the long-term future of the club has to be the priority and we fully support this.
“Although we have now managed our last game for the club, we will continue to work with the board in the coming weeks to ensure a smooth transition and minimise any disruption.
“There are lots of people we want to thank and once the next few weeks are out of the way and the dust has settled, we’d like to find the right way to do that. For now, we want to thank everyone who has supported us since we arrived at the club in May 2013. It has been a privilege to manage this brilliant club and we leave with some incredible memories that we will keep with us forever.“
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