Chertsey Town
3
Slough Town
1
Evans (59)
Friendly
In their fifth pre-season friendly of the 2024/25 campaign, a Slough Town side missing a number of players through illness and injury faced a stern test against Chertsey Town at Alwyns Lane. Despite the Rebels' strong start to pre-season, they succumbed to their first defeat, losing 3-1 to the Curfews.
The Slough starting lineup included two trialists in the back four, with another five making an appearance in the second half.
The game kicked off with a shock for Slough as the hosts found the net within the first thirty seconds. Chertsey capitalized on a defensive lapse, setting the tone for a challenging afternoon for the visitors. Just four minutes later, Chertsey doubled their lead with a stunning strike from outside the box, leaving goalkeeper Hugo Sobte with no chance.
The Rebels managed to gain some footing after the early setbacks, yet they struggled to create clear-cut opportunities. The first half concluded with Slough trailing 2-0, a frustrating scoreline reflecting their inability to break down a resolute Chertsey defense.
In the second half, Slough Town's lineup saw multiple changes, including Sam Evans replacing David Ogbonna. The introduction of fresh legs brought a much-needed spark to the Rebels' play. Their persistence paid off in the 59th minute when a miscommunication in the Chertsey defense allowed Evans to score his first goal for Slough, reducing the deficit to 2-1.
However, Slough's momentum was short-lived. In the 68th minute, an error from goalkeeper Hugo Sobte handed Chertsey their third goal, reinstating their two-goal advantage. Despite the setback, Slough showed resilience and continued to press forward, creating several half-chances, particularly from wide areas and set-pieces.
As the match progressed, Slough made further substitutions, with Bayliss, Ochieng, and Roth making way for another trialist, Ogbonna, and Spasov. These changes injected some energy into the team, but the Rebels couldn't convert their positive play into additional goals.
The match ended 3-1 in favour of Chertsey Town, marking Slough's first defeat of pre-season.
Reflecting on the game, Slough assistant manager Tony Fontenelle emphasized the learning opportunities that come with pre-season matches. "That’s the beauty of pre-season. Lots of lessons learnt. Lots of questions answered. As the saying goes, you learn more in defeat than you do in victory. Full credit to Chertsey who gave us a real test. Dust ourselves down and move on," Fontenelle said.
Slough Town will look to bounce back quickly and provide minutes to a number of players missing for this match as they prepare to face Leverstock Green at home on Tuesday evening, with kickoff scheduled for 8pm. The Rebels will aim to build on the lessons learned from today's defeat, hoping to return to winning ways in front of their home supporters.
The Slough starting lineup included two trialists in the back four, with another five making an appearance in the second half.
The game kicked off with a shock for Slough as the hosts found the net within the first thirty seconds. Chertsey capitalized on a defensive lapse, setting the tone for a challenging afternoon for the visitors. Just four minutes later, Chertsey doubled their lead with a stunning strike from outside the box, leaving goalkeeper Hugo Sobte with no chance.
The Rebels managed to gain some footing after the early setbacks, yet they struggled to create clear-cut opportunities. The first half concluded with Slough trailing 2-0, a frustrating scoreline reflecting their inability to break down a resolute Chertsey defense.
In the second half, Slough Town's lineup saw multiple changes, including Sam Evans replacing David Ogbonna. The introduction of fresh legs brought a much-needed spark to the Rebels' play. Their persistence paid off in the 59th minute when a miscommunication in the Chertsey defense allowed Evans to score his first goal for Slough, reducing the deficit to 2-1.
However, Slough's momentum was short-lived. In the 68th minute, an error from goalkeeper Hugo Sobte handed Chertsey their third goal, reinstating their two-goal advantage. Despite the setback, Slough showed resilience and continued to press forward, creating several half-chances, particularly from wide areas and set-pieces.
As the match progressed, Slough made further substitutions, with Bayliss, Ochieng, and Roth making way for another trialist, Ogbonna, and Spasov. These changes injected some energy into the team, but the Rebels couldn't convert their positive play into additional goals.
The match ended 3-1 in favour of Chertsey Town, marking Slough's first defeat of pre-season.
Reflecting on the game, Slough assistant manager Tony Fontenelle emphasized the learning opportunities that come with pre-season matches. "That’s the beauty of pre-season. Lots of lessons learnt. Lots of questions answered. As the saying goes, you learn more in defeat than you do in victory. Full credit to Chertsey who gave us a real test. Dust ourselves down and move on," Fontenelle said.
Slough Town will look to bounce back quickly and provide minutes to a number of players missing for this match as they prepare to face Leverstock Green at home on Tuesday evening, with kickoff scheduled for 8pm. The Rebels will aim to build on the lessons learned from today's defeat, hoping to return to winning ways in front of their home supporters.
Slough Town Line up
First half: Hugo Sobte, Trialist, Scott Davies, Dan Bayliss, Trialist, Henry Ochieng, Jeanmal Prosper, Dan Roth, Gary Abisogun, Slavi Spasov, David Ogbonna. Second half: Hugo Sobte, Trialist, Dan Bayliss (Trialist 60), Trialist, Jeanmal Prosper, Henry Ochieng (Ogbonna 60), Dan Roth (Spasov 60), Trialist, Trialist, Sam Evans, John Ufuah.