BRAINTREE Town boss Ryan Maxwell was delighted with his team's first run out in the traditional pre-season friendly opener at Newmarket Town, writes DAVID WARD.

The Iron comprehensively beat the home side 6-2, in what was a highly entertaining game.

Maxwell opted to have two completely different teams for each half, with the aim of seeing as many new players and possible new signings in action.

And in reality but for the heroics of the home keeper, the winning margin would have been much higher.

Maxwell said: "The scoreline doesn't matter at all in these game because it's the way the players adapted to the pace and pressure I want them to play in every game, forcing themselves on their opponents.

"They did just that and I was impressed with the commitment and hard work all the players put in on the day.

"I want my side to play with tempo, passing the ball quickly and getting forward and creating goal scoring chances which is what we did.

"We should have scored more but we certainly created enough chances.

"I was particularly impressed with the second half team performance where they were quickly into their stride and played with such a good tempo and the players seem to knit in well together.

"The first half was not quite so good but again there were several new faces in the side and it's often hard for them to gel straight away and they did initially allow the home side too much space when defending which is really why we conceded the two goals.

"But it's early days and I feel we're really going in the right direction but there's still a great deal of work to do before the serious business starts."

Braintree, featuring just five players from last season in the 23-man squad, made a great start.

They took the lead on six minutes when new signing Marcus Gouldbourne saw his tremendous first-time shot charged down by the home defence only for Lionel Ainsworth, the former Motherwell striker who was at Welling United last season, to drive the ball low into the home net.

Newmarket equalised seven minutes later but on 19 minutes Femi Akinwande restored the Iron's lead with a swerving shot from outside the area.

Seven minutes later, the Iron added a third through a great piece of individual skill by Jake Clowsley who sprinted clear of four home defenders to drive the ball low into the home net.

Within three minutes the home side though pulled a goal back when a shot Iron keeper Preston Edwards had covered was deflected off defender Kyran Clements into the net.

In the dying moments of the half first Ainsworth, then Harry Hope and again Akinwande all saw goalbound shots charged down at the last moment.

With a new side in the second half, the Iron carried on with the pace and tempo from the first half and within two minutes scored their fourth when Corry Davidson fired a low shot from outside the area across the front of the goal into the net.

With what was a more cohesive attacking display by the Iron, they repeatedly stretched the home rearguard.

On 56 minutes they added their fifth goal created by the forward run of Gianni Cricklow, the 23 year-old former Hanwell Town winger, who unselfishly slide the ball across to the unmarked Anderson Pinto to tap into the net.

Substitute Pauliss Ditkevicius, the 24 year-old Lithuanian midfielder, made an immediate impact debut coming on by scoring a goal on 72 minutes with a hard low, right-foot shot that went in off a post.

For the remaining minutes of the game the Iron kept pressing and another newcomer full-back Ezre Ikebusai saw his fierce first-time shot saved by the home keeper and both Luke Holness and Davidson saw similar shots scrambled away from the goal line.

Overall it was an impressive all-round performance by both Iron teams, leaving manager Maxwell with a welcomed problem of choosing his actual starting XI come the big kick-off, next month.

The Iron's proposed next friendly match at AFC Sudbury on Tuesday has been called off by the home side.

Braintree's next friendly is at home to Bishop's Stortford on Saturday, kick-off 3pm.

Braintree Town (first half): Edwards; Sade, Clements, Akins, Porter; Frimpong, Hope, Gouldbourne, Clowsley; Ainsworth, Akinwande.

Second half: Johnson (Billy); Ikebusai, Gipson, Pennel, Porter (62 Ditkebicius); Pinto, Johnson (Matt), Payne, Davidson; Holness, Cricklow.