Poor Run Continues

Slough Town's worst run in the Berger Isthmian League, Premier Division since October 1979 continued at Wexham Park on Saturday, when they went down to their heaviest home league defeat for more than two years, against Hitchin Town.

The Rebels never really recovered from being a goal down within the first minute of the match and then conceded a second inside the opening 15 minutes as they fell to their third defeat in a row.

Once again Slough's lack of pace at the back was fully exposed by Hitchin's lively front runners, who also gave the Rebels a lesson in the art of finishing.

But had Slough taken a quarter of the hatful of chances they created during this match they could well have ended up with the three points.

During the second half it was virtually one-way traffic towards the Hitchin goal but a combination of bad luck and poor finishing contrived to prevent the Rebels from ever getting back into the match.

Slough made what manager Terry Reardon quite rightly described afterward as "a terrible start".

"The one thing we didn't want was to concede an early goal," said Reardon, but within a minute of the start Hitchin were ahead.

A long ball out of defence by Les Harriott found the always dangerous Steve Mahoney, who with a tremendous burst of speed left Joe Moloney for dead. The Hitchin striker then slipped the ball past the advancing Frank Parsons and Andy Pearson was on hand to apply the finishing touch.

Les Barrett and Roy Butler then went close for Slough, before after 15 minutes Hitchin went further ahead. A short corner between Paul Giggle and Ian Adcroft ended with the latter cracking home a splendid shot from just outside the area which went into the net off the far post.

Slough were now really up against it, but to their credit they battled back well showing plenty of commitment and playing some good football.

Right on the stroke of half-time the hard-working Roy Butler went close with a cracking shot which Hitchin keeper Rob Walker knew very little about.

The second half developed into a constant stream of Slough attacks on the Hitchin goal as they forced 10 corners, but somehow the ball would just not go into the net.

Butler saw one header clawed away by Walker and another headed off the line by Ken Morgan, while another effort by Rowan Dodds was cleared off the line by Micky Nunn.

Steve Hardwick and Butler also went close with well struck shots, but the turning point came in the 55th minute when Slough had a "goal" disallowed.

A corner from Barry Friend was headed over the line by Butler, but after the referee, Mr J. Marriott, of Watford, had given the "goal" he then ruled out the effort after consultation with his linesman for handball against Butler.

Had this effort been given it could as Reardon said: "Changed the whole course of the game."

But it was not to be and after 80 minutes Hitchin made victory secure with a third goal. A long ball down the right by the impressive Adcroft sent Pearson clear and he ran almost half the length of the field without ever really being challenged before firing past Parsons.

Reardon said afterwards that it was always going to be difficult coming from behind after conceding the early goals, and that Hitchin gave Slough a lesson in finishing and defending.

But the Slough boss added: "In the last 20 minutes of the first half we played some good football — probably as much as we have played in recent games."