Jared Myers at Plainmoor on Saturday. Photo: Cameron Webb/Slough Town FC

--

Henry Ochieng says Saturday’s 5-1 defeat for the Rebels at Torquay United didn’t fairly and accurately reflect their contribution to the game.

Teams at the bottom of the table very rarely get the rub of the green, and Slough’s interim management team can point to several incidents that went against them and contributed to this heavy defeat.

For the most part, they were competitive, and they managed to silence the crowd in the first and second half before collapsing late on.

Throughout the opening 45 minutes they’d shown themselves capable of hurting their hosts, with Saikou Janneh having headed one decent chance just past the post. But on the stroke of half-time, Dennis Odeniran was shown a second yellow card for dissent and a tough trip to Plainmoor suddenly looked much more difficult.

The Rebels managed to mask their numerical disadvantage for 20 minutes in the second half and even took the lead through Janneh’s 60th minute penalty after Kyle Brooks was brought down in the box.

But momentum swung on the goals scored by Matt Jay (63' and Callum Morton (70'), and the visitors capitulated in the final minutes as Jacob Beaumont-Clark (87', 94’) scored twice and Luke Browne (90') also found the net.

“I think the scoreline doesn’t reflect the team performance in the first half and up until the red card. Anyone that was there watching the game, they would attest that it wasn’t a fair scoreline,” said Ochieng.

“But the boys gave their all, apart from the last 20 minutes when we imploded a little.

“It was difficult to take, conceding another five goals away from home, but we can take positives from the first half up until the red card.

“First one was harsh I believe, and the second one was hearsay. The ref is saying one thing and Dennis is saying he said another thing.

“Unless there is a recording of that, it’s tough to say. But he misses this Saturday’s game, and we have to shuffle things around to accommodate for that.

“If you were at the game we had moments where we could have taken a foothold in the match. We could have gone ahead earlier, before the red card. There were positives to take from how we attacked the game and went forward, particularly against such a prestigious club and we shut their fans up a little bit.

“They brought on a few subs and that changed the dynamic of their shape. They subsequently took the lead. We’ve watched the game back and there were things we could have done better as a team and as a management group. Ultimately, sometimes, you just don’t get the rub of the green and it doesn’t go your way, so you must move onto the next game.

“We always try to fight to the end, and there was a capitulation late on but that’s because we were chasing the game. Gaps started to open, and Torquay took advantage of that with the players they have.

“The last 10 minutes doesn’t reflect the whole game.”

Ochieng hopes the Rebels take positives from the way they played for 60 minutes in this clash as they look to improve their faltering home form when Horsham visit Arbour Park this Saturday.

A couple of seasons ago, Slough went a full calendar year without losing a competitive match at Arbour Park, but they’ve looked much more vulnerable on the 3G of late and have picked up just one point from their first six home matches - a 1-1 draw at home to Ebbsfleet United.

“We’ve discussed that as a team. People can’t come to our home ground and pick up points off us,” added Ochieng.

“Slough has been a tough place to come to in recent seasons, and we need to go back to that. Hopefully we can kick that off on Saturday and go on a bit of a run at home.

“We’re assessing Horsham, reviewing footage of their recent games and speaking to different clubs that have played against them. Everyone seems to be saying the same thing.

“They’re a decent side in this league. But they’re coming to Slough so it’s not going to be an easy game for them. We’re going to look to make it as hard as possible.”

Ochieng has also promised further reinforcements as the club attempts to address its weaknesses as the season progresses. Saturday’s result has left the Rebels bottom of the table, still six points from safety.

“Stevie Bausor had a little niggle and was back at Leicester this week having assessments with their physios,” said Ochieng. “That’s why we had to move fast in the market, and we managed to bring in Killian Barrett from Barrow. We’re grateful to have him. We’re looking to strengthen our squad again in the coming weeks.

“We’ve brought in Terell, Saikou, Dennis and that shows the direction we want to go towards, and the performances are coming together. The team is slowly starting to gel.”