On nine visits to Braintree Town, Bromley have only tasted victory on one occasion, and Good Friday’s fixture did nothing to alter this sequence of scorelines.

A glancing header by Simeon Akinola at the near post, from a left wing corner on the stroke of half time, was enough to give the play off hopefuls all three points at Cressing Road.

In front of their second highest gate of the season – 1,321 – the hosts had the brighter start to the game, forcing a number of corner kicks in the opening five minutes.

Kenny Davis had a shot charged down, and then provided a dangerous looking cross that was scrambled away, before a Dan Sparkes cross flew across the face of Bromley’s goal.

Bromley gradually overcame their poor start, and a Louis Dennis free kick came to nothing; before Moses Emmanuel’s shot did not trouble Tom King in the Braintree goal.

Lee Minshull’s vicious dipping 30 yard shot went just the wrong side of the crossbar, and Ben May’s header was also just over the crossbar moments later.

Danger man, Davis shot straight at Bromley’s goalkeeper, Alan Julian when, if the shot had been twelve inches either side of the goalkeeper, it surely would have put the home side ahead; and minutes later the Braintree captain headed straight into Julian’s arms from a pinpoint cross from the left.

Just as everyone was expecting the half time whistle, Rob Swaine gave a needless corner away and from Jeff Powell’s flag kick, Akinola got away from his marker to glance a header just inside Julian’s right hand post.

Apart from Minshull’s shot in the 2nd minute of the second period that King saved, Bromley did not register another shot on goal until the closing stages when Swaine headed wide from a corner in the 89th minute – nor in fact did Braintree, except a couple of long range efforts which did not trouble the visiting goalkeeper.

In between, both sides saw plenty of the ball in the middle third of the park, but when it came to goalmouth incident that was at a premium.

The game ended with Bromley looking to gain a point and, in five minutes of time added on, the visitors gained several corners which were easily defended. Although on one occasion a defenders headed clearance flew just wide of the post.

TEAM: Julian, Anderson, Holland, Swaine, Francis, Fuseini, Joseph-Dubois, Minshull, May (Cunnington, 64), Emmanuel (Goldberg, 61), Dennis (Coombs, 78), SUBs (not used): Higgs, Rodgers.