Goddard denies Salisbury with last-gasp leveller

Slough Town produced a dramatic late comeback to rescue a point in a six-goal thriller against Salisbury on Community Day at Arbour Park.

Johnny Goddard’s superb stoppage-time strike ensured the Rebels avoided defeat after the visitors had looked set to snatch victory through a late penalty from substitute Noah Coppin.

Despite a threadbare squad and the departure of top scorer Wiktor Makowski the previous day, Scott Davies’ side showed character and resilience to battle back twice and earn a deserved share of the spoils in front of a crowd of 1,181.

Salisbury made the sharper start and struck first inside seven minutes. Josh Hedges intercepted a pass in midfield and quickly moved the ball forward to Tommy Willard, who slipped Nathan Odokonyero into space. The forward cut inside before smashing a powerful finish into the bottom corner beyond Alfie Marriott.

The visitors continued to look dangerous, with Max Jolliffe clipping the outside of the post moments later as Slough struggled to regain their composure.

The Rebels were handed a route back into the contest on 14 minutes when Tyrese Dyce burst forward on the overlap and delivered a low ball across the area. A deflection gave Ruben Shakpoke a chance to attack the loose ball and the striker was clipped by a Salisbury defender as he moved goalwards.

Shakpoke stepped up to take the penalty himself and calmly dispatched the spot kick into the bottom corner to level the scores.

The equaliser settled Slough and the Rebels began to grow into the game. Dan Roth controlled the midfield while Harvey Walker caused problems with several dangerous deliveries, one of which saw Shakpoke head narrowly over.

At the other end Salisbury continued to threaten through the impressive Hedges, who orchestrated several promising attacks.

Their pressure paid off three minutes before half-time when Willard again found space between the lines and slipped a pass through to Hedges, who finished neatly from close range to restore the visitors’ advantage.

Slough trailed 2-1 at the break but returned with renewed intent after the interval.

A quickly taken free-kick early in the half saw Goddard race into the right side of the box before pulling the ball back for Dyce, whose effort flashed just wide of the far post.

Salisbury thought they had extended their lead just before the hour mark when Odokonyero found the net following a neat passing move, but the flag was raised for offside.

Moments later Slough made their first change, introducing Luke Holness for Tyrique Clarke — a substitution that would have an immediate impact.

Within two minutes the Rebels were level. Shakpoke showed excellent awareness to slide a perfectly weighted pass into the path of Holness, who raced through on goal before calmly finishing beneath Will Buse.

With the scores at 2-2 the game became increasingly open. Shakpoke nearly put Slough ahead when he chased a long ball and beat his marker, but Buse produced an excellent save to deny him.

Tarik Gidaree then surged down the right flank and delivered a dangerous cross that narrowly evaded a finishing touch as Slough pushed for a third goal.

Davies made further changes with just over ten minutes remaining, handing a senior debut to Milan Trotman from the Elite Development Squad alongside Erion Zabeli and John Clarke.

Both sides continued to search for a winner as the contest entered its closing stages. Holness headed over from a Makumbi cross before Salisbury responded with chances of their own, including a Coppin header that landed on the roof of the net.

The game appeared to have swung decisively in the visitors’ favour in the 89th minute when Salisbury were awarded a penalty. Coppin stepped forward and converted from the spot to put the Whites ahead for the third time.

But the Rebels were not finished.

With the clock ticking into stoppage time Slough launched one final attack, with Goddard working the ball inside from the left flank after being found by a brilliant cross-field pass by Jaiden Drakes-Thomas. Goddard showed his trademark composure to curl a superb effort beyond Buse and into the corner of the net from the edge of the box, sparking wild celebrations among the home crowd.

The late equaliser ensured Slough claimed a hard-earned point in a hugely entertaining contest and continued their positive run of form since Christmas, despite the squad’s ongoing injury challenges.

The Rebels climb to 13th in the table having now reached the 50-point mark, while Salisbury stay 19th but maintain an eight-point cushion above the relegation zone.

Attention now turns quickly to Monday evening’s trip to Chelmsford City, where Slough will look to build on the fighting spirit shown once again at Arbour Park.