Dover Athletic
2
Nikaj (46), Coker (80)
Slough Town
0
League
Attendance: 976
Slough Town fell to a 2-0 defeat away at Dover Athletic on a heavy Crabble pitch, as second-half goals from George Nikaj and substitute Kenny Coker secured the points for the in-form Whites.
Scott Davies made seven changes to his starting XI. Peter Ojemen, Reiss Greenidge, Johnny Goddard, Brian Nelson, Jared Myers, Ansu Janneh and Luke Holness all came into the side after Tuesday evening's 3-2 win over AFC Totton.
Pre-match rain made conditions difficult, and the opening stages reflected that with both sides struggling to find fluency. Dover enjoyed some early territory, with George Nikaj and Rolando Onu linking up down the flanks, but Slough’s defence initially stood firm.
Nikaj delivered a teasing cross on 18 minutes that narrowly evaded George Wilkinson, before Onu produced the best opening of the half on 27 minutes — bursting into the box and squaring for Nikaj, who just failed to make clean contact.
Slough’s brightest moment came when Tyrese Dyce forced Mitch Walker into action with a low ball into the box, while Francis Mampolo briefly thought he had opened the scoring for Dover on 28 minutes, only for the assistant referee to rule him offside.
Dover continued to probe before the break, Ojemen having to make a desperate clearance inside his own six-yard box to prevent bypassing Adam Desbois, while Dyce sliced wide for Slough late in the half.
The breakthrough arrived four minutes after the restart. Harry Beadle’s long delivery was headed onto the crossbar by Jalen Jones, and George Nikaj reacted quickest to fire home the rebound from close range for 1-0.
Nikaj almost struck again moments later with a fierce left-footed effort from distance that flew narrowly wide, and Dover continued to press, with Francis Mampolo and Siju Odelusi both testing Desbois as the home side sought breathing space.
On the hour, Slough made a bold five substitutions in one move, introducing Jordan Greenidge, Jacob Borgnis, Harvey Walker, Wiktor Makowski and Tyrique Clarke in search of an immediate response. The changes gave the Rebels a lift in tempo and urgency.
Slough thought they had equalised on 76 minutes when Jared Myers converted from a Harvey Walker cross, but once again the assistant’s flag denied them.
Dover made their own changes, and just two minutes after coming on, Kenny Coker made an instant impact. Latching onto a flick-on from fellow substitute Luke Baptiste, he raced through and calmly finished low past Desbois to seal the contest at 2-0.
Nikaj nearly added a spectacular third late on with a long-range effort that clipped the crossbar before Desbois produced a superb double save on the rebound to keep the scoreline respectable.
Despite six minutes of added time, the Rebels were unable to find a route back into the game as Dover extended their unbeaten run to five matches.
Despite a determined second-half push following wholesale changes, Slough were unable to break down a composed Dover side, who managed the closing stages well.
Attention now turns fully to the biggest game of the season so far, as the Rebels return to Arbour Park next Sunday 7 December for the Emirates FA Cup Second Round tie against Macclesfield, live on TNT Sports.
Scott Davies made seven changes to his starting XI. Peter Ojemen, Reiss Greenidge, Johnny Goddard, Brian Nelson, Jared Myers, Ansu Janneh and Luke Holness all came into the side after Tuesday evening's 3-2 win over AFC Totton.
Pre-match rain made conditions difficult, and the opening stages reflected that with both sides struggling to find fluency. Dover enjoyed some early territory, with George Nikaj and Rolando Onu linking up down the flanks, but Slough’s defence initially stood firm.
Nikaj delivered a teasing cross on 18 minutes that narrowly evaded George Wilkinson, before Onu produced the best opening of the half on 27 minutes — bursting into the box and squaring for Nikaj, who just failed to make clean contact.
Slough’s brightest moment came when Tyrese Dyce forced Mitch Walker into action with a low ball into the box, while Francis Mampolo briefly thought he had opened the scoring for Dover on 28 minutes, only for the assistant referee to rule him offside.
Dover continued to probe before the break, Ojemen having to make a desperate clearance inside his own six-yard box to prevent bypassing Adam Desbois, while Dyce sliced wide for Slough late in the half.
The breakthrough arrived four minutes after the restart. Harry Beadle’s long delivery was headed onto the crossbar by Jalen Jones, and George Nikaj reacted quickest to fire home the rebound from close range for 1-0.
Nikaj almost struck again moments later with a fierce left-footed effort from distance that flew narrowly wide, and Dover continued to press, with Francis Mampolo and Siju Odelusi both testing Desbois as the home side sought breathing space.
On the hour, Slough made a bold five substitutions in one move, introducing Jordan Greenidge, Jacob Borgnis, Harvey Walker, Wiktor Makowski and Tyrique Clarke in search of an immediate response. The changes gave the Rebels a lift in tempo and urgency.
Slough thought they had equalised on 76 minutes when Jared Myers converted from a Harvey Walker cross, but once again the assistant’s flag denied them.
Dover made their own changes, and just two minutes after coming on, Kenny Coker made an instant impact. Latching onto a flick-on from fellow substitute Luke Baptiste, he raced through and calmly finished low past Desbois to seal the contest at 2-0.
Nikaj nearly added a spectacular third late on with a long-range effort that clipped the crossbar before Desbois produced a superb double save on the rebound to keep the scoreline respectable.
Despite six minutes of added time, the Rebels were unable to find a route back into the game as Dover extended their unbeaten run to five matches.
Despite a determined second-half push following wholesale changes, Slough were unable to break down a composed Dover side, who managed the closing stages well.
Attention now turns fully to the biggest game of the season so far, as the Rebels return to Arbour Park next Sunday 7 December for the Emirates FA Cup Second Round tie against Macclesfield, live on TNT Sports.
Slough Town Lineup
- 1 Adam Desbois
- 3 Peter Ojemen
- 5 Kiki Oshilaja
- 6 Reiss Greenidge
- 10 Johnny Goddard 9
- 15 Brian Nelson 25
- 17 Tyrese Dyce
- 23 Jared Myers
- 24 Ruben Shakpoke 11
- 28 Ansu Janneh 7
- 29 Luke Holness 22
Substitutes
- 7 Tyrique Clarke 28
- 8 Jaiden Drakes-Thomas
- 9 Jordan Greenidge 10
- 11 Wiktor Makowski 24
- 14 Scott Davies
- 22 Jacob Borgnis 29
- 25 Harvey Walker 15
Dover Athletic Lineup
Mitch Walker (c), Roman Charles-Cook, Jalen Jones, Harry Beadle, Harrison Sodje, Luca Cocoracchio, Siju Odelusi, George Wilkinson (Bivesh Gurung 82), George Nikaj (Finley Marjoram 86), Rolando Onu (Kenny Coker 77), Francis Mampolo (Luke Baptiste 79). Unused substitutes: Fuad Sesay, Jacob Mensah, Jordan Gillmore.