Relief in the roar – Eastbourne Borough get it right at both ends
When the final whistle sounded on a dark, bitter Tuesday night at Tonbridge, there was not just a collective roar of success for Eastbourne Borough but a little cheer of relief too.
The Sports had extended their remarkable defensive record to six (and a half) clean sheets, but they had also struck twice at the other end. And how much better does 2-0 sound than 0-0!
“We managed the game fantastically,” said boss Adam Murray.
"Against ten men, you still have to stick to the task and not wander off the game plan. This is the time of the season when you look to your big players to turn up, you look to your strikers – and we have proven goalscorers. George Alexander is above a goal every two games, Alfie Pavey is proven at this level, and the wide players are contributing – Kai (Innocent) from wing-back, just like Courtney Clarke the other week.
“And of course we are delighted to see John Shamalo so quickly off the mark. That’s what we brought him in for!”
Delighted is the word – and a little bit relieved. The Sports are in the play-off places, and in the sort of form which must surely have the other contenders glancing sideways.
The competition for those precious top seven places is dauntingly fierce. The strong contenders are getting a little bit stronger, and of the current top seven, five clubs are currently unbeaten in their last six games. Only Dorking Wanderers and Truro City have registered a defeat in the run of matches since pre-Christmas.
The Sports’ last league reverse was back in late November, at in-form Maidstone United. But might the six drawn games over these weeks – and the twelve points passed up – prove a drag anchor on the last leg of the voyage? That’s the negative view, but Murray doesn’t really do negative.
“We are still half-way through the season. If you are sitting up there on top now, there is an awful lot of pressure on you. It can nag at players’ mentality, especially if you do suddenly lose a couple of games. We are really very happy staying in and around the mix.
“In my mind I have a number of league points that we need, to stay in and around those top spots. And from that platform, we’ll give ourselves a great chance.”
Murray is dead right. Statistically, not all of the clubs around them can win every game. Even among this season’s clutch of high-quality leaders, there will be slip-ups, and twists and turns, and a heap of head-to-head confrontations where clubs will drop points.
And what of Slough? This has not been the easiest season for the Rebels. At the impressive Arbour Park stadium built – and still owned – by the local council, the football club’s capacity to generate income is limited, and manager Scott Davies has to drive hard deals to keep a competitive playing squad.
The affable Davies, himself an intelligent player who has spent his career in midfield engine-rooms, steered his team to a 1-1 draw at the ReachTV Stadium in September. But Slough have not won a National South game since late November – and they have shipped thirteen goals in their last three matches.
So dare the Sports travel to the fringes of West London in genuine hope of a goalfest? They are fit, organised, full of creativity – and ready to turn pressure into strikes, possession into goals.
Home supporters had a glimpse of new striker Shamalo, who came off the bench for the final minutes of the goalless draw with Truro. But he went one better at Tonbridge, pouncing for an excellent second goal in the 2-0 victory. John has virtually no experience at this level: he came through youth ranks at Luton Town before catching the eye – and scoring a heap of goals – at Barton Rovers, two steps below Borough.
Shamalo will be plying his trade next season with Barrow in League Two, but in the meantime he can do himself and the Sports a few favours. He is tall, quick, unafraid, a handful for defenders. Remind you of anyone? Borough have a current assistant manager whose two-decade striking career ticked all of those boxes. Step forward, the new Matt Green!