Slough Town
3
Nelson (17), Myers (30), Drakes-Thomas (74)
Abingdon United
0
B&B Senior Cup
Attendance: 254
Slough Town booked their place in the semi-finals of the Berks & Bucks FA Senior Cup with a controlled and professional 3-0 victory over Abingdon United under the lights at Arbour Park on Tuesday evening.
Sixteen years on from their last meeting, and with three divisions separating the two sides in the league pyramid, Slough dominated possession from the outset and set about breaking down an organised Abingdon defence. Tyrique Clarke fired well wide from range inside the opening five minutes, while Jared Myers was lively early on, cutting inside his full-back on eight minutes before seeing a promising effort blocked.
The breakthrough arrived after 17 minutes and came in emphatic fashion. A dangerous cross from the left by Tyrese Dyce was knocked down into the path of Myers, whose effort was deflected clear to the edge of the area where Brian Nelson arrived to strike a sweet low half-volley into the right corner to register his first senior goal and put the Rebels ahead.
Abingdon almost responded immediately when Tyrese Njogu’s header bounced back off the top of the crossbar on 22 minutes, before Adam Desbois was called upon to deny Freddy Dunham in a one-on-one situation moments later.
Slough doubled their advantage on the half-hour mark with a move of real quality. Jaiden Drakes-Thomas and Luke Holness combined neatly to find Jordan Greenidge, whose perfectly weighted first-time pass released Myers inside the box. The wing-back smashed his finish past Cavanagh to make it 2-0.
Myers was again heavily involved three minutes later, driving a powerful low ball across the face of goal that begged for a finishing touch, while Leo Cole and Holness exchanged efforts at opposite ends as Slough went into the interval two goals to the good.
There were changes at the break as Carl Dennison replaced Adam Desbois in goal and Josh Adepoju came on for Myers. Slough continued to press after the restart and Dyce again flashed a dangerous ball across the six-yard box that narrowly evaded everyone in the middle.
Tarik Gidaree tested Cavanagh with a stinging effort from range on 58 minutes before Slough began to introduce youth from the bench, with Jeddiah Appiah making his senior debut in place of Nelson on 63 minutes. Abingdon threatened briefly through Isaac Shaw, who found space in the box but dragged his effort off target.
Further changes followed as Ethan Mosdell and Kian Berry were introduced on 70 minutes, and just four minutes later Slough effectively put the tie beyond doubt. From a corner, Adepoju worked his way into shooting space and saw his effort parried into the path of Drakes-Thomas, who reacted fastest to smash a low drive underneath the goalkeeper for Slough’s third.
Abingdon enjoyed their best spell of the match in the final ten minutes as they pushed forward in search of a consolation, forcing veteran goalkeeper Dennison into a sharp point-blank save to deny Ashley Howell on 85 minutes. Appiah curled a late effort wide and Ansu Janneh snatched at an opportunity on the edge of the box as Slough saw out the closing stages comfortably.
The clean sheet was a fitting way for Dennison to mark his first appearance for the club since October 2008, while the evening also provided valuable senior experience for several more EDS players as Slough progressed into the last four of the competition for the first time since lifting the trophy in 2019.
Sixteen years on from their last meeting, and with three divisions separating the two sides in the league pyramid, Slough dominated possession from the outset and set about breaking down an organised Abingdon defence. Tyrique Clarke fired well wide from range inside the opening five minutes, while Jared Myers was lively early on, cutting inside his full-back on eight minutes before seeing a promising effort blocked.
The breakthrough arrived after 17 minutes and came in emphatic fashion. A dangerous cross from the left by Tyrese Dyce was knocked down into the path of Myers, whose effort was deflected clear to the edge of the area where Brian Nelson arrived to strike a sweet low half-volley into the right corner to register his first senior goal and put the Rebels ahead.
Abingdon almost responded immediately when Tyrese Njogu’s header bounced back off the top of the crossbar on 22 minutes, before Adam Desbois was called upon to deny Freddy Dunham in a one-on-one situation moments later.
Slough doubled their advantage on the half-hour mark with a move of real quality. Jaiden Drakes-Thomas and Luke Holness combined neatly to find Jordan Greenidge, whose perfectly weighted first-time pass released Myers inside the box. The wing-back smashed his finish past Cavanagh to make it 2-0.
Myers was again heavily involved three minutes later, driving a powerful low ball across the face of goal that begged for a finishing touch, while Leo Cole and Holness exchanged efforts at opposite ends as Slough went into the interval two goals to the good.
There were changes at the break as Carl Dennison replaced Adam Desbois in goal and Josh Adepoju came on for Myers. Slough continued to press after the restart and Dyce again flashed a dangerous ball across the six-yard box that narrowly evaded everyone in the middle.
Tarik Gidaree tested Cavanagh with a stinging effort from range on 58 minutes before Slough began to introduce youth from the bench, with Jeddiah Appiah making his senior debut in place of Nelson on 63 minutes. Abingdon threatened briefly through Isaac Shaw, who found space in the box but dragged his effort off target.
Further changes followed as Ethan Mosdell and Kian Berry were introduced on 70 minutes, and just four minutes later Slough effectively put the tie beyond doubt. From a corner, Adepoju worked his way into shooting space and saw his effort parried into the path of Drakes-Thomas, who reacted fastest to smash a low drive underneath the goalkeeper for Slough’s third.
Abingdon enjoyed their best spell of the match in the final ten minutes as they pushed forward in search of a consolation, forcing veteran goalkeeper Dennison into a sharp point-blank save to deny Ashley Howell on 85 minutes. Appiah curled a late effort wide and Ansu Janneh snatched at an opportunity on the edge of the box as Slough saw out the closing stages comfortably.
The clean sheet was a fitting way for Dennison to mark his first appearance for the club since October 2008, while the evening also provided valuable senior experience for several more EDS players as Slough progressed into the last four of the competition for the first time since lifting the trophy in 2019.
Slough Town Lineup
- 1 Adam Desbois 13
- 2 Tarik Gidaree
- 3 Peter Ojemen
- 8 Jaiden Drakes-Thomas
- 9 Jordan Greenidge
- 14 Scott Davies
- 15 Brian Nelson 27
- 17 Tyrese Dyce 4
- 23 Jared Myers 26
- 28 Ansu Janneh
- 29 Luke Holness 10
Substitutes
- 4 Ethan Mosdell 17
- 10 Kian Berry 29
- 13 Carl Dennison 1
- 26 Josh Adepoju 23
- 27 Jeddiah Appiah 15
Abingdon United Lineup
Eddie Cavanagh, Hamza Aljabari, Isaac Shaw, Tom Lawer, George Gilmore (c), Sam Orlando, Harry Walters (Elliott Osborne-Ricketts 75), Tyrese Njogu (Finlay Beckett 64), Anaclet Odhiambo (Ashley Howell 69), Leo Cole, Freddy Dunham. Sub not used: Finlay Bates.