Depleted Slough fall to champs

A TOUGH, powerful and very professional Enfield machine steamrollered their way to the Isthmian League championship at Wexham Park.

A spirited, but wounded and thoroughly exhausted Slough, sadly reduced to 10 men soon after half time, were flattened by ruthless Enfield.

Wycombe Wanderers did all they could on the day in a bid to win the title, beating Dulwich 3-1, but it was all in vain and they finish one point behind Enfield.

Perhaps it might have been different if Dave Russell, enjoying a trial with Arsenal, Kieran Somers, Tim Turl and Micky Cooper, all unfit, had been available.

Certainly Wycombe's cause was not helped when Slough had full-back Bob Underwood whisked off to hospital just before half-time with a dislocated left shoulder.

And Slough's prospects of helping their neighbours win the title virtually dissolved when Alan Gane folded up in agony when the hamstring which had kept him out for two weeks went again and he was stretchered off just after half-time.

Slough were one goal down at that stage, John Bishop finding the net with a cracking shot from the edge of the penalty area after a John Tone free kick had been headed out in the 26th minute.

Before that Trevor Porter had made two very good saves and soon after Eddie Reeve hit the Slough keeper's legs when he intercepted a bad back pass from Terry Reardon and also had a header scrambled off the line.

Then, after 41 minutes, Underwood made a spectacular diving header to clear from Keith Searl's head - but dislocated his shoulder as he fell.

It was the third time the shoulder had gone and Underwood, last year's Sportsman of the Year, was due to go to hospital on Tuesday to have it pinned.

Slough quickly shuffled their line-up, Gane moving to full-back, Gordon Bartlett from attack to midfield and Terry Brown coming on as substitute, and won their first corner in the 49th minute from which Carrick had to make his first save of the match, diving to catch a Hans Vandenberg header.

Then in the 50th minute Gane was carried off and inevitably against 10 tired men Enfield went on to secure the points required to retain the title won last year.

Their second goal came after 65 minutes when a John Tone free kick found Reeve unmarked at the far post and he had time to pick his spot past Porter.

Five minutes later Tone charged into a tackle on the right, had a lucky rebound and the ball flew across the face of goal where Reeve was on hand to tap in.

It was ample revenge for Enfield's F.A. Trophy defeat against Slough and the points dropped at home in a 1-1 draw earlier in the season.

But Slough stubbornly refused to accept defeat and scored the best goal of the game in the last minute.

Roy Davies started the move with a lovely ball down the left for Paul Lee and he was supporting in the penalty area when the Slough striker cut inside and slid the ball neatly across for him to slot in.

It was a classy finish to a niggly game, but a very unsatisfactory finish to the Isthmian League championship race with Slough too depleted and tired to give of their best on behalf of Wycombe.