Eastbourne Borough play-off hopes are alive after Slough are seen off

Borough were almost ahead on 3 minutes. Sam Oguntayo, on loan from Charlton Athletic, powered fully 60 yards before finding Jaden Perez, who, despite an awkward bounce, improvised a strike that was well saved by Will Dennis. But Sam would continue in the same adventurous style – and the Priory Lane regulars loved it: what a signing!

See 69 photos from Eastbourne Boro v Slough – by Andy Pelling and Lydia and Nick Redman.

A minute later Brad Barry’s header from a corner grazed the crossbar, and the Rebels at this early stage were reeling. A sweeping right-flank move saw Luke Pearce played in at the near post, but his angle was tight and Dennis – who played impressively throughout in the Rebels’ goal – smothered the shot. The corner produced three successive shots, all battered away as Slough threw in bodies like some phase of the Eton Wall Game.

It set the pattern for a first half in which Eastbourne dominated both ball and territory. Shiloh Remy was weaving and sprinting on the right side, while Leone Gravata was a constant threat on the left.

The visitors had set up with a 4-5-1 leaving the impressive Ogo Obi just a little isolated up front. On one of their few forages forward, skipper Josh Jackman drilled his way into the box and took a tumble, but the contact was too slight to persuade referee Sam Read to point to the penalty spot.

But defensively, the visitors were just about hanging in at 0-0. Jack Burchell turned their defence with a lovely ball to Remy, who left defenders for dead but was denied by keeper Dennis. Then Remy himself played in Walker, but a defender smothered his shot. And James Hammond – back to fitness and back to his influential best – found Pearce racing through the right channel, only to be bundled over for a 40-60 penalty shout.

Probably Borough’s best chance of the half fell to Gravata, turning centre backs inside out - only to fire straight at keeper Dennis – whose heroics were keeping Slough in the game, at least until the interval.

The Rebels came out after the break with more ambition, but they were undone on 55 minutes. Walker had already been denied at the back post from a huge raking Ryan Bartley cross. And within a couple of minutes a mesmerising move on the right flank found the Borough skipper racing in at the back post for 1-0.

Charlie almost doubled the score, sprinting through the middle and striking a fierce shot that Dennis did well to parry away. And then a wonderful Charlie free-kick from fully thirty yards was just touched on to the crossbar by the agile Slough keeper.

The Rebels needed a Plan B, and they pushed forward in numbers, winning territory but rarely creating clear chances.

But Eastbourne’s supersub Norman Wabo had the final word in stoppage time, smacking in a second from a Morgan Williams cutback after the Crawley Town loanee had performed wizardry in squeezing in from the right corner flag. Stormin’ Norman had grabbed a late winner at St Albans last week and once again he wore the broadest grin in the stadium!

Eastbourne Borough (4-2-3-1): Worgan; Bartley (Scarlett 80), Burchell, Barry, Oguntayo; Hammond, Perez (Williams 77); Remy, Walker, Gravata; Pearce (Wabo 84). Unused subs: Luer, Beckford

Referee: Sam Read

Att: 1039