Three goals just didn't justify the championship qualities that oozed from a quality Slough performance on Saturday.....even the Ashford manager geared himself up for a remarkable comment.

" Slough are the best non-league side I've ever seen based on that performance" he admitted after the Rebels neat one-touch football left the Nuts and Bolts all out of synch on his own turf.

Despite two howling penalty misses, Slough were the engineers behind some startlingly fluid football- and Ashford were left clutching an oily rag. As early as Neal Stanley's ninth minute opener, you could see that, on the day, the gulf between the Beazer Homes Premier leaguers and the VOL leaders was as subtle as a crash on the M4.

Only the experience of Ashford skipper and goal-keeper Peter Carman and a rather bewildered defence seriously denied Slough hitting double figures. You couldn't help thinking that Carman would have preferred that the Slough players team bus, two supporters coaches , a minibus and a smattering of those that drove down in cars should have all broken down on the M20. Such was the one way traffic on the pitch and relative noise from the Slough fans dotted all around his goal end in the second half.

Slough boss Alan Davies was well pleased: " You've got to be more than happy with a 3-0 result away from home. Some of the football we played , especially in the second half, was a little bit special. Ashford are not a bad side and doing reasonably well in the league, but all credit to the lads to come away with a result like that in a cup game" he said.

Slough looked deadly going forward, despite having the likes of Tony Dennis on the substitute's bench and Paul Waites down to play in the reserves. Precision first time football was at a premium as Adams and Greenaway switched flanks with Stanley and Thompson boring down on goal supported by Dell and Dodd in midfield. The speed of the front line was yards faster than the Ashford defence who didn't even have time to dwell on the ball.

Neal Stanley almost made it two in the 19th minute after he pounced on a poor back pass by McRobert, but Carman was there to smother before a panic-stricken defender hacked the ball clear for a corner. Ashford were confined to snatching the breakaway clearance which occurred only three times in the first half with dangerous Jeff Ross on the left blasting wide and Simon Clark catching Bunting off his line- but Tony Knight was on hand to head off the line. Then Steve Thompson's tenacity provided Slough with their first penalty on the half hour when right-back Dave Lee handballed his cross.

Bobby Dell struck the spot kick well like that against St Albans but the ball careered past the 'keepers left hand post. Shots then rained in on the Ashford goal with a fierce 25-yard drive by Greenaway headed over the bar, and Thompson and Adams denied on the goal-line, although one player headed away while hanging onto his own net. Adams was denied again after the break with a shot from six yards cannoning off an unsuspecting defender at point blank range, but was rewarded with a simple chest touch from a Brian Greenaway corner in the 53rd minute. By now it was target practice with Gary Dodd supporting the front men and hoofing a couple through the imaginary rugby posts.

Then a typical run from Stanley came to an abrupt halt when he was upended in the penalty box. This time Brian Greenaway stepped up before Dell and struck the ball against the 'keepers right hand post. As frustration and overkill loomed for the Rebels, Neal Stanley gave the Slough crowd another taste of what they deserved, latching onto a Keith White through ball and slotting firmly past the advancing 'keeper in the 67th minute. You can guess the rest.