Slough Town pass toughest pre-season test yet with draw against Reading

Rebels boss Scott Davies. Photo: George Beck

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In their toughest and most intense friendly to date, Slough Town held a Reading FC side featuring ‘four or five first team regulars’ to a 1-1 draw at the Royals’ Bearwood Training Ground on Tuesday.

Scott Davies was delighted by the resilience shown by the Rebels to claim a share of the spoils against the same Royals side that had finished Saturday’s friendly with Tottenham Hotspur at the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

That Reading side had given their Premier League opponents one or two nervy moments at the weekend, but they weren’t able to fully capitalise on the first half lead given to them by Jacob Borgnis’ strike.

The Rebels ‘rode their luck’ at times according to Davies in what was largely a backs-to-the wall performance, however, they snatched an equaliser through a trialist in the second half from a corner.

It wasn’t the prettiest of goals, but the performance has encouraged Davies with the new league season due to start in just over two weeks.

Slough kick off their National League South campaign away to Tonbridge Angels on Saturday, August 9.

“The first game was a really good test. It felt like a proper game,” said Davies.

“It’s the highest intensity game we’ve had this pre-season, and it was definitely needed.

“They were a very good outfit. They had four or five lads who have played regularly in their first team, and I think quite a few others who have made appearances as well. It was a good outing for us to go there and go head-to-head with a good side.

“Their starting XI was the XI that finished against Tottenham on Saturday, which shows you their strength.

“We drew the game 1-1 and it was a positive performance. At the same time, we also rode our luck as you must in games like that against good opposition. Adam Desbois, the goalkeeper, was fantastic to be fair, he was very good. Overall, it was a really good work out.

“Our goal was scored by a trialist. He came on in the second half and it came off his shoulder in a scramble from a corner. It wasn’t the nicest of goals.”

Davies arranged the game with Reading to see how his players would cope in a match where they didn’t see a lot of the ball. New keeper Adam Desbois made a string of fine saves to keep the score down, but the resilience shown by the visitors when under pressure bodes well for the coming campaign, says the manager.

“We were thinking of the games we’ve had so far, and the games we’ve got coming up,” he said.

“We might have lots of matches where we have lots of the ball, but we’ve also done a lot of work on being out of possession and we wanted to test ourselves against a team that we knew would play and probably dominate the ball. It was a thought-out process as to why we played that game and it served up exactly what we needed.

“We had a strong XI – all signed players that started. There were a few unavailable because of work and a few that were carrying slight knocks. But at least six or seven of that XI will likely start the season. We were strong enough without being full strength.

“Reading have had 15 training sessions since they’ve been back in full-time and we’ve had three training sessions and four matches up until yesterday. You can see the difference in workload and what they’ve been able to work on. They’ve got a group that is continuous from last year whereas we’ve got a brand-new group. There’s a lot to be pleased about and a lot still to work on, but we’re not going to be playing that calibre of side every single week. It shows our resilience though for sure.

“It’s not about winning, there’s more to get out of pre-season than that, but at the same time, we don’t want to lose. I’ve tried to instil that mentality in the boys that it’s important to understand what it feels like to win a game and that every game is important, but obviously staying injury free and building up your fitness is the main aim.”

After the game, Davies dashed off to see the newest Elite Development Squad recruits in action in a pre-season friendly with Thame United. After starting well, and taking the lead early in the second half, the youthful Rebels faded in the latter stages to lose 5-1. But Davies was able to see positives in how well they competed for the most part of an hour.

“It was a brand-new group of players, all new to the group, barring one or two who have been in and around the squad for a few years,” added Davies. “It was a chance to have a look at the new group of players, and they did extremely well up to the 55–60-minute mark.

“As young lads can do, they conceded three goals from three set pieces in the space of five or six minutes. The game went away from them, but there’s a lot to be learned from that. A lot of these lads think that they’re ready, but this is part of their learning and development to understand what it takes to be a non-league footballer.”