Frome Town provided plenty of perspiration but little inspiration and once the first goal went in, play-off certainties Slough Town were never in trouble and it was really just a question of how big the winning margin would be.
With two goals in each half from the visitors with no reply from Frome, the 4 nil scoreline was a fair reflection on the match.
After Frome’s 4-3 win at Merthyr on Monday, there was some hope in this fixture, but with Slough looking to cement their play-off position and Frome 23 points off the play-off positions and 47 points above the drop zone, there wasn’t really a lot to play for other than pride.
Frome’s squad showed Ollie Knight playing for the first time as left back, and with Ben Griffiths slotting in at right back and Ollie Knowles alongside Marcus Mapstone, Frome’s defence were playing together for the first time, so things would probably be a little tough against a side that got to the 2nd round proper of the FA Cup this year.
Despite the recent rain, the pitch was very playable, though it could be said to sticky, and the match kicked off with Slough very nearly taking the lead in the 2nd minute as a corner was flicked on by a Frome defender and Matt Day’s header was only just pushed over the bar by Kyle Phillips.
As the match settled it was pretty even but a bit scrappy, though Slough were starting to show that when they attacked, they attacked en masse and looked dangerous whenever they did so, and in the 11th George Miller did very well to block a shot from Lee Tugwell that looked destined for the far corner.
Frome did start to show a little attacking flair on the right as Josh Brace and Joe Raynes were combining well, but these periods were sporadic and short lived, and Slough were starting to get a hold on the midfield and when the first goal arrived in the 35th, it was no real surprise, with Warren Harris cutting in from the left and hitting a cracking 25 yard shot with the outside of his right foot that curved away from Phillips and went in off the inside of the top of the far post.
Three minutes later, Slough made it 2-0 as a period of sustained pressure ended with Frome not clearing their lines and Perry Coles hammered home a low shot from just inside the penalty area on the right hand side. Despite Jon Davies very nearly breaking through on goal a minute later, Slough looked very comfortable at this stage.
The second half started the same way as the first had finished with Slough running the game with ease, but in the 53rd Frome went very close as Davies produced a superb in-swinging free kick that perfectly connected with the head of the diving Raynes and the ball was arrowing into the top corner until Jack Turner pulled off a super save to claw it out for a corner.
Frome were never to go close to troubling Turner again, and Slough made it 3-0 in the 83rd as substitute Harrison Gilkes finished off a period of pressure with a close range shot and four minutes later they made it 4-0 as a similar move led to a similar shooting opportunity for James Dobson who made no mistake from 12 yards.
Marcus Mapstone was chosen for the H&B Tyres Man of the Match Award. Crowd: 161. Entertainment Value: 2/5
Colin Carpenter
