GATESHEAD 1 BRAINTREE TOWN 1

Vanarama National League

A late penalty for the hosts denied Braintree Town a full quota of points from their Vanarama National League trip to Gateshead.

Michael Cheek had put the Iron ahead in a scrappy game in the north east and they appeared to be heading back home with a win, but Gateshead snatched a leveller five minutes from time to frustrate their visitors.

Iron boss Hakan Hayrettin went with the same line-up that had begun their previous two games, including the 2-0 win against Torquay in the FA Trophy seven days before.

There was a change on the bench though, as new loan signing Ebou Adams, who had joined in the week on a month’s deal from Norwich City, came in.

The unaltered line-up gave some welcome consistency and the Iron made an encouraging start against a side who had beaten them 4-1 earlier in the season.

And they almost went ahead in the opening minutes when Manny Parry headed towards goal from a corner by Harry Lee, but the effort was cleared off the line.

It meant the deadlock remained and neither side was able to break it as things stayed quite even between the two.

When Gateshead did get an effort on target, it was from the boot of ex-Iron player Mitch Brundle and the ball went straight into the arms of Iron keeper Sam Beasant.

There was then another moment of concern for the visitors as another effort had to be scrambled away to safety by Zak Jules but the game remained a scrappy affair and neither side was able to get an advantage before half-time.

Things didn’t improve much after the break as neither side could find much in the way of quality in the final third of their respective ends of the pitch.

Clear-cut chances were few and far between, so it was probably little surprise that when the goal did come in the 62nd minute, it was from a set piece.

Reece Hall-Johnson, who had just come on as a substitute, fired a wonderful corner into the middle of the Gateshead box and Michael Cheek powered the ball into the back of the net.

The goal lifted the tempo of the game and Iron tails were suddenly up, however, they were almost pegged back from a corner at the other end where Sam Jones headed inches wide of the target.

Gateshead knew they would have to carry the attack to their visitors but the Iron back four looked to contain them in search of a second consecutive clean sheet.

They were unable to keep them out until the final whistle, though, as an equalising goal came in the 85th minute Adams had come on for his Iron debut and was judged to have handled the ball in the penalty area as it was played into the box to give the hosts a lifeline.

Patrick McClaughlin stepped forward and made no mistake from the penalty spot to restore parity.

The goal was a late blow for the Iron and they tried to make a claim on the full three points, but a last-gasp effort from Parry saw the Braintree defender have another effort cleared off the line and they had to settle for a single point from their trip to the north east.

Braintree Town: Sam Beasant, Jerome Okimo, Zak Jules, Harry Lee, Chez Isaac (Ebou Adams), Jack Midson, Simeon Akinola, Michael Cheek (Lee Barnard), Monty Patterson (Reece Hall-Johnson), Sean Clohessy, Manny Parry.

Subs not used: Joe Maybanks, Danny Rumens.

Referee: Peter Wright