SL CLASSICO WITH CHRISTMAS BELLS ON

Printed in the FA Trophy 3rd round game v Maidenhead United Saturday 7th December 2024  We won 2-1 in front of 1,770 

Football is all about hope, oh and having fun. As I tuned into Talk Sport to listen to the Trophy draw, like all Slough fans I was hoping for Maidenhead. Bingo! After 23 years – give or take some Berks and Bucks Cup – we get them at home. The SL Classico is finally back.

Now, I’ve got a confession to make. After nearly 50 years of watching the Rebels I’ve never seen us play Maidenhead in a competitive fixture – not even a Berks and Bucks one. Sure I’ve popped over to their ground occasionally to watch them but never the Rebels v the Magpies. This isn’t all together surprising as we’ve passed like ships in the night.

When I was growing up it was Wycombe that were our biggest rivals and games to relish. The most memorable was that almighty ding-dong in March 1993 when we were challenging for the Conference title as it was known then. My local pub the Wheatsheaf was full of Slough supporters up for travelling to the big games – with unofficial coach trips to Colchester, Reading and Wycombe. The problem was getting people to leave the bloody pub and so inevitably we always arrived late. Usually that wasn’t a problem, but at Wycombe the ground was full to bursting, so a few of us more determined ones jumped over the fence while the less nimble watched from the hill side. The official attendance was 7,230 but unofficially it was a lot more and was the record Conference crowd for many years. Wycombe eventually became an established league club while we became a homeless basket case.

As we plummeted down the leagues only Windsor had any semblance of a proper derby; no disrespect to Burnham or Beaconsfield but these matches just didn’t do it for me. And we always seem to lose to them – Beaconsfield helped in part by our money as we swapped our Windsor tenancy for their place. It was soul destroying If I’m honest.

So am I showing a lack of ambition saying I'm not bothered about being in the Grand National League? For starters it’s brutal and has got to be up there with the Premier League as the biggest jump up for promoted teams...just look at last seasons successful teams and see how they are struggling. And if Bromley and Woking's away day hospitality is anything to go by then thanks but no. I like swapping ends, chatting to opposition supporters and having a beer on the terraces. There does need to be three up to the Football League as its created a bottleneck for successful clubs and maybe a Midlands National League but I’m not sure how that would work logistically.

Maidenhead hit the jackpot by having a sell on clause for one of their ex players and they looked like they were getting a new ground before a change of council changed the goalposts. York Road might be one for the historical romantics but it seriously has its limitations. I’d love to know how much some clubs are spending just to keep their heads above water in the National League. If it were up to me I would get clubs to publicise warts and all their monthly accounts to give supporters a better idea of just what it costs running a football club. I’d also do this with council accounts, especially highlighting how the majority is spent on social care now with nothing left for places people can meet like youth clubs, libraries and community centres.

Ambition can also be about what’s happening behind the scenes not just on the pitch, and how a club like Slough – where the council is one step beyond bankrupt – can be the social glue that binds a place together. We’ve already seen this turbo charged since the signing of the lease for Arbour Park.

What we’ve also got to remember is what we see of any organisation is just the tip of the iceberg – the majority of hard work hidden under the waves. Yes we can see the tangible stuff like the new bar, the smart link up with the local boxer, the fancy food trucks and we’ve got more partners than a gigolo! But I know from being involved in community groups; the meetings, phone calls, earache, worries about finance, policies and procedures…..its relentless and when you get it wrong, boy do people let you know.

It’s games like these that will drive attendances, let people know that Slough the Town has a football team where you can have a laugh, meet new friends, maybe even get to bang a bin or shake a tambourine. Get it right today, on and off the pitch and we will pick up a few more supporters, a bit of prize money and some bragging rights. Where down to the last 64. Not a time to dream about Wembley just yet. But that wont stop us hoping – and having a laugh while we pray to the footballing gods that we put one over our near neighbours.