Slough Town
2
Ogbonna (84), Minhas (87)
Chippenham Town
2
Amadi-Holloway (14), Spokes (54)
League
Attendance: 906
Matthew Lench
A wonderful second-half fightback from Slough Town saw them rescue a vital point at the death, thanks to an 87th-minute goal from Nathan Minhas, writes Freddie Gatrell.
In what was a testing first 45 minutes for the Rebels, it was the visitors who struck first, after only 14 minutes. Aaron Amadi-Holloway, the centre-half turned striker, rose highest from a corner, winning his aerial battle well and beating stand-in keeper Hugo Sobte in the Slough goal.
Regardless of the early Bluebirds opener, this did not appear to hamper the Rebels' spirits with numerous chances being created during the remainder of the first half.
A clever free-kick from 25 yards out found the feet of Minhas in the 25th minute with the forward firing just wide of the far post from a tight angle.
Matt Lench continued to test the Bluebirds' shot-stopper Will Henry with a dangerous curling effort from long distance being well stopped in the 41st minute.
The second half started well in the opening stages for the Rebels, with a physical and aggressive Chippenham side fouling frequently, affording the hosts numerous dangerous free-kick opportunities.
A whipped set piece from Lench flashed right across the face of goal in the 49th minute, with the merest of touches from a Slough player likely to have been fatal for Chippenham.
Nevertheless, the Bluebirds responded in the best possible way only minutes later, winning a favourable free kick 25 yards out in a central position. Up stepped Luke Spokes, whose effort effortlessly beat the Slough wall and flew into the top right corner to double Chippenham’s advantage.
With the game firmly in the grips of the visitors, it required a mammoth effort from the Rebels to pull themselves back into the game. The key turning point came in the 66th minute, where excellent skill from David Ogbonna forced a sloppy foul from the already booked full-back, Nat Williams, who duly received his marching orders.
With the visitors down to 10 men, three Slough changes led to a shift in momentum. An excellent piece of skill from Johnny Goddard on the left flank allowed the number 10 the time and space to deliver a perfectly weighted cross to the head of an arriving Ogbonna who leapt to an astounding height over Chippenham's captain Eddie Jones and headed into the top right corner.
Moments later, the Rebels found themselves in a near-identical position, with Dan Bayliss this time lifting in a wonderful cross to the back post, with an unmarked Minhas nodding home to restore parity.
Despite ten minutes of additional time, the Rebels were unable to find the winning moment, with an effort from Goddard being excellently saved by Henry.
This draw means Slough finished the day in 10th place in the Vanarama National League South, whilst simultaneously making it 17 consecutive matches unbeaten at home.
Next up for Scott Davies' men is another home clash on Tuesday night, this time against Dartford in a 7.45 pm kickoff.
In what was a testing first 45 minutes for the Rebels, it was the visitors who struck first, after only 14 minutes. Aaron Amadi-Holloway, the centre-half turned striker, rose highest from a corner, winning his aerial battle well and beating stand-in keeper Hugo Sobte in the Slough goal.
Regardless of the early Bluebirds opener, this did not appear to hamper the Rebels' spirits with numerous chances being created during the remainder of the first half.
A clever free-kick from 25 yards out found the feet of Minhas in the 25th minute with the forward firing just wide of the far post from a tight angle.
Matt Lench continued to test the Bluebirds' shot-stopper Will Henry with a dangerous curling effort from long distance being well stopped in the 41st minute.
The second half started well in the opening stages for the Rebels, with a physical and aggressive Chippenham side fouling frequently, affording the hosts numerous dangerous free-kick opportunities.
A whipped set piece from Lench flashed right across the face of goal in the 49th minute, with the merest of touches from a Slough player likely to have been fatal for Chippenham.
Nevertheless, the Bluebirds responded in the best possible way only minutes later, winning a favourable free kick 25 yards out in a central position. Up stepped Luke Spokes, whose effort effortlessly beat the Slough wall and flew into the top right corner to double Chippenham’s advantage.
With the game firmly in the grips of the visitors, it required a mammoth effort from the Rebels to pull themselves back into the game. The key turning point came in the 66th minute, where excellent skill from David Ogbonna forced a sloppy foul from the already booked full-back, Nat Williams, who duly received his marching orders.
With the visitors down to 10 men, three Slough changes led to a shift in momentum. An excellent piece of skill from Johnny Goddard on the left flank allowed the number 10 the time and space to deliver a perfectly weighted cross to the head of an arriving Ogbonna who leapt to an astounding height over Chippenham's captain Eddie Jones and headed into the top right corner.
Moments later, the Rebels found themselves in a near-identical position, with Dan Bayliss this time lifting in a wonderful cross to the back post, with an unmarked Minhas nodding home to restore parity.
Despite ten minutes of additional time, the Rebels were unable to find the winning moment, with an effort from Goddard being excellently saved by Henry.
This draw means Slough finished the day in 10th place in the Vanarama National League South, whilst simultaneously making it 17 consecutive matches unbeaten at home.
Next up for Scott Davies' men is another home clash on Tuesday night, this time against Dartford in a 7.45 pm kickoff.
Slough Town Lineup
- 1 Hugo Sobte
- 2 Josh Jackman
- 4 Joe Dandy 24
- 5 Dan Bayliss
- 8 Matthew Lench
- 9 Nathan Minhas
- 10 Johnny Goddard
- 11 Christie Ward 15
- 12 Leon Chambers-Parillon 26
- 16 Temi Eweka
- 23 David Ogbonna
Substitutes
- 13 Kian Austin
- 15 Eze Ebuzoeme 11
- 18 Freddie Solly
- 24 Slavi Spasov 4
- 26 Oliver Spicer 12
Chippenham Town Lineup
Will Henry, Eddie Jones (c), Freddie Grant (Jake Evans 71), Craig Fasanmade (Matt McClure 90+), Aaron Amadi-Holloway, Jem Hewlett, Luke Spokes, Dan Ellison, Ed Williams (Caine Bradbury 76), Nat Williams, Will King. Unused substitutes: Tom Owen-Evans, Tom Mehew.