Rebels Progress After Extra Time

Midway through the second period of extra time, Keith White chipped a ball high over the stretching hand of Kevin Hudson to win the game for Slough Town to take the Rebels through into a first round FA Cup tie against Bognor Regis at Wexham Park on November 15.

That is how the evening will go down in the record books, but the true story is of a tremendous cup-tie played with passion, in a perpetual deluge.

The match was a pulsating, exciting affair and it took just ten minutes for the Rebels to take the lead. With the Dover defence in tatters, Ken Wilson was upended just inside the box and Jimmy Brown converted the spot-kick amid howls of abuse.

Within two minutes, an equaliser settled the home fans down. Tilley conceded a free-kick just outside the area and Tim Dixon applied the finishing touch. As Dover began to play to their strengths, stretching Slough over their vast pitch and finding some unlikely holes in the visitors' defence, it came as no surprise when they took the lead in the 25th minute. A dithering defence allowed Paul Neat plenty of space and he had plenty of time to score.

For a while, Slough looked totally disorganised and with every Dover attack, the home side looked likely to increase their lead. Cox made desperate saves from Ovard and Walker, but in the closing minutes of the first-half, Slough should have been awarded a second penalty. Wilkins got both hands to a Brown shot which had beaten the 'keeper . . . only for the unsighted ref to award a fruitless corner.

The second half provided a transformation. With the Rebels attacking the churned-up end, the home side were suddenly on the rack and the equaliser in the 55th minute came as no surprise, as Wilson passed immaculately for Jeff Bateman to head past Hudson. How Slough then failed to take the lead remains a mystery, as Dodds, Wilson and Brown saw their shots miss by a whisker. But Dover still broke away quickly and Cox had to save superbly from Dixon two minutes from time.

Slough almost snatched it when a magnificent run by Dodds ended when the striker's shot shaved the post. Extra-time was hardly the tonic the players needed, as the soggy conditions began to take their toll. Slough threatened during the first period, but home 'keeper Hudson was equal to everything.

Almost directly from the kick-off, of the second period, Keith White found himself in front of goal and unmarked. With cool precision, he lifted the ball over the despairing Hudson and into the net. Slough's travelling support erupted despite the threatening situation. After this, fireworks were thrown on the pitch. And Referee Vigus, a linesman for last season's Orient match, stopped the match, threatening to abandon it. No sooner had the game restarted than another explosion near Graham Cox apparently finished the game Amid the chants of "Stop the match" from the home fans, the referee took the players off for two minutes before returning to restart the game.

Dodds almost clinched the match twice, but the final three minutes saw the Slough goal under continuous siege. And a lot of responsibility on Cox, as he was bombarded from behind by bottles and cans. But heroics won the day and the match ended without any further complications off the pitch.