Six Roads To Braintree

Braintree Town 2-1 Eastleigh (National League)

The games are coming thick and fast, a busy month ending in Essex ahead of plenty more action to come in February. I last visited Braintree on Bonfire night where there were plenty of fireworks, but not much on the pitch in a dire single goal defeat to Brackley, I’ve seen their results have hardly improved, Steve Pitt’s side have lost their last three, including a penalty shoot out defeat in the National League Cup at Truro City on Tuesday night where on loan goalkeeper Mason Terry scored a last minute leveller, he’s been I’m told, very good since joining from West Ham, but without a win in five, not many others have been, in Iron colours of orange and blue.

I watched Eastleigh play at Boston at the start of the month and thought they were excellent in a 2-1 win, however, they have fell off a cliff, losing all four games since then, Scott Bartlett’s side will be hoping not to get drawn into a relegation scrap, starting the day five points above the drop zone.

Eastleigh to Braintree is 134 miles and a two and a half hour drive up the M3 and across the M25, my journey a similar distance from Nottingham, I’ve worked out though I actually only need to take six roads from my house (minus getting out the cul-de-sac which I don't usually need a map for). The A52, A1, A14, M11, A120, and turn left at the McDonalds roundabout on to Cressing Road.

A simple but lengthy journey, I’m happy to get the miles in and it’s an easy run on a Saturday where traffic is lighter than midweek, I’ve eventually pulled up at the Orange Tree pub which I park outside, ahead of walking across the suburban lightly coloured housing estate and through the gates of the Rare Breed Meat Co. Stadium tucked away hidden, on the Clockhouse Way.

The Venue

It’s a real quaint old scruffy ground with its clubhouse behind the goal, open standing areas at each end, a long low roofed stand backed by trees opposite a larger middling seated stand with cover, and a gantry above it.

I’ve arrived with plenty of time, so go for a wee where I notice a fabulous piece of artwork on a wall, I had seen it before, but usually more rushed, probably paid less attention to what it was all about, it’s a funky portrait of Prodigy lead singer Keith Flint, who died in 2019, I google famous people from Braintree and apparently he was one, his band formed in this very town and the club restored the mural recently which was originally a tribute to his death, fabulously produced by another local man, artist Dave ‘Gnasher’ Nash.

Other famous people of Braintree include John Ray, said to be the father of English Natural History, James Challis, a nineteenth century astronomer and Louie Spencer, a rather camp dancer from the TV show Pineapple Dance Studios.

Hands washed, I’m up to the press seats where the Eastleigh media team are here, I’m soon to be joined by a scout who I remember from my last game here, and a local reporter who both give me the lowdown on recent goings off.

The view is great, a couple of pillars slightly obstruct the pitch, but I’m near ten rows up, set back, well covered, although I’ve brought far too much clothes today, the coat and hat are already whipped off, the sun is bright, the pitch in good grassy nick, the feeling of spring around the corner.

The Game

It’s a funny one today, the Eastleigh tweeting team sat beside me don’t seem confident, one of them is a Spurs fan, he tells me the Spitfires have become very ‘Spursy’ of late. The locals around me see this as a must win home match, but as the two teams kick off, it’s the boys in Jade Green who dominate early possession, Bartlett's boys are strutting it around as Braintree sit off, the home side look passive, indecisive, unforced errors are plenty, they don’t look confident at all as Eastleigh’s big strong powerhouses come forward from the back, for every long throw in or free kick opportunity they have.

The two teams are matched up in shape, the hosts 3-5-2 with your traditional wing backs pushing forward, where there seems to be a lot of space in behind, Eastleigh also three at the back, three big guys in Pierre, Eweka and Fernandez, in midfield they are neat, Kieron Evans playmaking whilst Lloyd Humphries, bald headed, does the ugly stuff, they have three forwards, Sam Pearson on the left, works hard, Aaron Blair on the right, has real technique, Harvey Saunders down the middle, adding a bit of size.

Braintree’s on loan goalkeeper Terry has already been called into action diving to stop an effort from Cousins, before Blair takes a lovely touch and shoots over, at the other end Elliot Thorpe runs powerfully forward and shoots over to offer some attacking threat alas, but it’s short lived, Eastleigh push again, they win a free kick, Evans low effort is pushed back by Terry, put in on the rebound by Fernandez, but the goal is ruled out for offside, the Eastleigh guys beside us however, hold up their laptops to show us, perhaps it was not.

It’s not the most enthralling half of football, half paced, in sunshine, the brightest thing is perhaps the Braintree kit, the Bristol Rovers style halves but in orange and blue, it looks great glistening against the green floor and blue sky, and as you feel they’ve done well to keep the score down to nil going into the break, they are given a chance themselves, from Eastleigh's own throw in, Walker somehow ends up prodding a shot goalwards, it’s cleared off the line, he should have probably scored himself, but Chay Cooper on the follow up smashes home, it’s not entirely against the run of play, but the best team you feel is behind.

The Score

“Braintree will be happy with that” I tell the reporter sitting besides me at half time, “they just need to keep it tight in the second half, slow the game down” he says.

Eastleigh however, have other ideas. The away side are immediately on the front foot, their centre halves are playing as inverted wingers, every chance they get they bomb forward, they’ll leave just one back as the rest are told to ‘go get that goal’ and it makes for the most entertaining match.

Braintree are naïve, typically young and hungry, Sahid Kamara is lively on the break and there are plenty of opportunities for the home team to get in behind, so every time Eastleigh push forward, Braintree see opportunity, it’s like a basketball match as through the away sides frailties, Braintree who’s joint top goalscorer this calendar year is their goalkeeper, suddenly look like an expansive attacking force.

They get lucky, when a brilliant run forward by Evans ends with Saunders smashing home, but he’s offside, more laptops are held up, this call again looks close “get some lines drawn” I say.

The hosts have chances though, Langston hits the bar from a corner, Cooper fires over, Kamara shoots straight at Townsend when through one on one, then at the other end Blair gets half a yard, a cross from the left finds the former Braintree striker, who runs in unmarked to level up and score against his old club, I take a look at the linesman, but no flag this time.

“It’s been a great half” I say aloud and it still has half an hour to go, but as both teams tire the intensity wears down somewhat, Braintree had a long trip from Truro midweek, Eastleigh have had a long trip here today, but they both battle well and put everything into it, by now the home team are very much the counter-aggressors, which is a turnaround from how they started the game.

“I would get Walker off now” says the local reporter besides me, but the Iron bring on Ryan Clampin, a left sider who’s been out injured for most of the season, his first touch is to cross a super ball into the box, there’s a bit of a scramble, the ball not cleared, suddenly it’s bouncing towards Walker who does the rest from six yards out, Braintree have the lead, “that’s why you’re not over there in the dugout” I tell the reporter.

The last twenty five is defence verses attack, Eastleigh are pumping balls into the box with ten men in their opponents half, but Braintree hold out well, Lundstram gets loose and fires an effort at Terry who miraculously saves, before a header by Saunders in injury time is even better kept out, flying to his right to push away from danger, the scout next to me says “swap over the keepers and Eastleigh would have won this 4-0 today”

In the end, Braintree held on, big John Akinde even coming on in the later stages to take some pressure off, the home side who started badly, ended brilliantly, player for player they grew into the game and got better with each minute, a big win that eases their own relegation concerns.

The Stars

Ahead of the game I asked about Braintree’s right wing back Jacob Pinnington and was told “he’s been one bright spark this season”. Good going forward, comfortable on the ball, you feel even if Braintree aren’t at this level next season, he, at least, will be.

Defensively they were good, but also rode their luck, often indebted to Mason Terry in goal, George Langston a big central defender played his part, whilst in midfield Chay Cooper and James Vennings played well, too little tigerish footballers who like to play the right way, Cooper especially, having a really good game. I liked the look of Elliot Thorpe who adds a bit of size and style in the number ten position, whilst Sahid Kamara started badly, he got better, he certainly has technique and pace, is a live wire aged 21, still very raw, if he can improve on his decision making and become more clinical in front of goal, he could have a very good career in the game.

For Eastleigh, for long periods they were very good, I actually like their system and their assets, although I felt today, they were a little gung-ho in style, Temitope Eweka and Aaron Pierre are huge defenders, solid and aggressive, Lloyd Humphries as always, a real battling irritant in midfield, lucky perhaps, not to have a booking, or three, Kieron Evans the cultured Welsh midfielder who drove with the ball, shown invention, and had a couple of free kicks cause panic, up front I really like Sam Pearson on the left, hard working, unflashy but sensible on the ball, Aaron Blair on the right, a real danger man with a great touch, his effort in the first half would have been one of the goals of the season, had it gone in.

The Verdict

The defeat leaves Eastleigh now looking over their shoulders, sixteenth in the National League but just three points above Braintree who sit still in the bottom four, they would be a little frustrated that others around them got good results today, but what that does is bring others into play, seven points separate twenty first and eleventh and any one of twelve or thirteen could probably still go down.

Can Braintree get out of it? Potentially yes, they have bottom of the table Gateshead next, who I think will certainly go, then Sutton United, who are a place above, level on points with two games in hand.

Can Eastleigh get sucked in? Potentially yes, but I feel they’ll have too much, and will come out of this mini slump sometime soon, but they’ll have to do it quickly, next up they host Wealdstone in a match they should win, if they don’t, they might start to become quite nervous, with Solihull Moors and Boreham Wood offering tougher tests, after that.

The Teams

Braintree Town: Mason Terry, Aidan Francis-Clarke, George Langston, Ben Drake, Jacob Pinnington, James Vennings, Elliot Thorpe (Goran Babic 81), Chay Cooper, Callum Logan (Ryan Clampin 73), Sahid Kamara (Zavier Massiah-Edwards 90), Lewis Walker (John Akinde 89).

Eastleigh: Nick Townsend, Lloyd Humphries, Luis Fernandez, Temitope Eweka, Kieron Evans, Aaron Blair, Harvey Saunders, Aaron Pierre, Sam Pearson (Jake Vokins 88), Jordan Cousins (Josh Lundstram 45), Archie Harris.

3:00pm Kick Off. Saturday 31st January 2026, Cressing Road, Braintree (att 1,000 est).