TOWN put in their best performance of the season to hit Egham Town for six in their Evo-Stik Southern League – Central Division clash on Saturday.
The hosts were in full control from the off the final goal tally could easily have been higher by the end at Butlin Road.
Ben George returned for the injured Craig Kelly at left-back in the only change to the starting line-up from the 1-0 victory at Kettering two days earlier.
Valley looked to round off a perfect holiday period with a third successive win and peppered the visiting target a number of times in the early exchanges.
Mitchell Piggon was denied by Jamie Norris in the Egham goal and both Lewis McBride and Sam Youngs came close to breaking the deadlock before five minutes were on the clock.
Robbie Burns then struck the base of the post as the onslaught continued before the deadlock was finally broken on 16 minutes.
McBride had been continually beating his man down the right and from it was one of these runs that allowed him to pull the ball back into the patch of Burns who guided his show low into the net past Norris.
It was not long before Grocott made it two when he slammed one home from another McBride cross after Justin Marsden had initially set the winger free with an excellent cross-field pass.
A Norris flying save from Burns’s long ranger kept the half-time margin down to a couple with Piggon also seeing his effort ruled out by the assistant’s flag after he had followed up on Norris’s save to Marsden’s well-struck shot.
There was no let up for the visitors in the second half either and four goals after the break secured an emphatic win for the hosts.
Piggon grabbed Rugby’s third when he nodded in from close range from a Youngs free-kick and the striker came close again shortly after with a low strike that the keeper managed to gather.
McBride continued to torment the rocky Egham back-line and when he was played in on 64 minutes he sped on to skip round Norris and ease the ball home to make it 4-0.
Valley keeper Richard Morris was finally called into action when he beat away substitute Ashley Quashie’s well-struck angled shot, before normal service was resumed at the other end when Marsden headed Grocott’s cross over.
Marsden then started and finished the move for Rugby’s fifth on 73 minutes, with McBride again providing the assist to allow Marsden a simple finish from a few yards out.
And a Grocott centre saw Marsden round off the scoring a minute later with another close range strike.
Lewis McBride breaks at pace against Egham. (s) Photo by Martin Pulley
