Report: Braintree Town 1-3 Magpies

 

Maidenhead United put an end to a four-game losing run with a well-deserved, and much-needed, three points at Braintree Town. 

 

The Magpies would open the scoring with no more than 50 seconds on the clock. A great bit of buildup play saw Shawn McCoulsky latch onto the ball in the box, dinking the ball home past a stunned Lucas Covolan. 

 

Braintree looked for a response, and had the ball in the final third for the next five minutes. This grasp on possession left little in the way of clear-cut chances, with Craig Ross easily able to punch away a string of Braintree corners and throw-ins. 

 

United’s next charge up the pitch would be the one which doubled their lead. A looping ball over the top found Tristan Abrahams and bamboozled the hosts’ defence, allowing the striker to calmly slot home and double the lead. 

 

It was all Maidenhead from there on in, with United working the ball into good spaces through Reece Smith and McCoulsky. Covolan was called into a hasty clearance on more than one occasion, although Town’s defence did just enough to prevent Maidenhead from wrapping up the game with only half-hour played. 

 

Braintree did have chances from time to time. Marley Marshall-Miranda’s effort on goal was hooked wide of the near-post, while Irons’ captain George Langston had a shot which was blocked by a stubborn Maidenhead defence before the first half came to a close. 

 

 

United nearly started the second half in the same fashion as the first as McCoulsky fired at Covolan, albeit this time his effort was saved. Moments later, United’s #9 would find himself through on goal, with the Braintree ‘keeper making a great block to deny McCoulsky’s second and United’s third. 

 

The striker himself would find the back of the net, even if the ball didn’t! A good run by Thierry Latty-Fairweather culminated in a low cross destined for McCoulsky, although the contested ball would be reached by the Braintree defence first ahead of a sliding McCoulsky. 

 

A comfortable lead was temporarily interrupted as Kyrell Lisbie poked one into the back of the net in the 66th minute. The one-goal advantage wouldn’t last long, however, when Marshall-Miranda brought down McCoulsky in the penalty area. 

 

“Which way you going bro?” was the question asked of Sam Barratt by a member of the ten-man Braintree, to which the winger responded by powering home into the roof of the net. 

 

From there, United kept a level head to see the game out. A series of tactical substitutions, combined with a last-minute save from Ross, would ensure Alan Devonshire bid farewell to his former side by taking all three points home to Berkshire. 

 

 

Braintree: Covolan, Terry, Clampin, Langston, Annesley, Francis, Blackwell, Marshall-Miranda, Effiong, Robinson (Davidson-Phipps, 52’), Cooper (Akinde, 46’) 

 

Magpies: Ross, de Havilland, Latty-Fairweather (Dyce, 81’), Ferguson, McCoulsky, Pettit (Keetch, 90’), Smith (Carvalho, 90’), Cochrane, Abrahams (Ajose, 89’), Massey, Barratt 

 

Attendance: 777