SLOUGH will probably need to win three of their four remaining Investec Women’s League games and hope other results go in their favour if they are to have any chance of finishing out of the Premier Division’s bottom two.

A 4-1 defeat at table-topping Holcombe leaves them four points adrift of the side immediately above them, University of Birmingham, who pulled off a shock 1-0 victory over Surbiton.

Holcombe are the only club to have lost to the Pink and Blacks this season - 2-1 at Upton Court Park last October - but they never looked in danger of suffering another shock on Saturday.

In fact, the game was virtually over as a contest inside the opening five minutes with captain Kat McGonigle admitting later “unfortunately, we started really badly.”

There were just a couple of minutes on the clock when Dirkie Chamberlain opened the scoring and Slough were still recovering from that early blow when Sofia Viarengo Cervino doubled her side’s lead three minutes later.

It got worse for Slough with Joanne Westwood making it 3-0 after 17 minutes and coach Kali Takher must have feared his side were heading for a massive defeat.

However, they did not let their heads to drop. They tightened up their defence and even showed some adventure going forward, which was eventually rewarded when Dilly Newton pulled a goal back by converting a penalty corner on 44 minutes.

That was the best they could achieve and seven minutes from time Viarengo Cervino made it 4-1 with her second goal of the game.

Immy Brown was voted Slough’s player of the match.

Team manager Bill Griffiths commented: “After being 3-0 down in less than 20 minutes we could have been looking at a huge score.

"But, our depleted team then dug deep, and to hold the top of the table to a 1-1 draw in the second half was down to guts and determination.”

He will be hoping those qualities will be shown again when Slough host play-off chasing Clifton Robinsons at Upton Court Park this Saturday (12.30pm). The teams drew 1-1 at Coombe Dingle back in October.

Slough men lost 4-1 at home to Wycombe and, with just three games remaining, they can only finish the season in the bottom two of Middx, Berks, Bucks & Oxon Premier Two along with Woking.

Their goal came from Rai Singh, taking his tally to 17, while on target for Wycombe were Dan Andrews, Dan Cox, William Needham and Stephen Sloan.

This weekend Slough travel to fourth-placed West Hampstead, having lost the home fixture 6-3 in November.