If anyone missed the detail of the game here is a VERY full description from the Braintree fans forum:
"It was a hard earned point for the Iron at a raucous Roots Hall this afternoon, with a strong rear-guard action forming the foundation which the home side struggled to breach.
With loan players being recalled, there was only four subs available to Steve Pitt, Alan Judge coming into make his first start for the club. The Iron kicked off and having played back to Langston, he launched it forward, Akinde wins the ball and lays the ball off, Judge tries to break away and is taken out with a crude slide tackle earning a very early yellow card for Ralph. Judge takes the free kick out on the left and goes for goal Hayes dives and gets it out via the post for a corner, nothing comes from it.
Parillon gets away down the Iron right, he feeds Bonne inside him and he hits an early shot bringing Grey into action with a good diving save. A lot of the football is scrappy with over/under hit passes and tackles flying in.
Blackwell attacks down the right and goes to the by-line winning a corner; Akinde meets it at the back stick and it's cleared off the line. Parillon raids again latching onto a long ball down the line, cuts inside as the angle narrows and Grey saves at his near post.
As the game flows from end to end, Braintree come again Blackwell cutting inside but his shot lacks power. From another Blackwell corner Langston glances his header across goal, Akinde retrieves it but is given offside. Southend's main threat continues to be Parillon and another good run from him sees him deliver a teasing cross which evades anyone in blue with Clampin seeing it out.
Annesley gets a facial injury and has to leave the field and a change of shirt. Another Iron attack and Lisbie has it just outside the left edge of the area, he manages to shrug off his marker but his shot is half blocked, it comes to Blackwell who fluffs his chance from 8 yards unable to sort his feet out. After the breakdown of a Southend attack, Grey retrieved the ball and does keepy-uppies which earns him a yellow card. The final attack sees Grey again called to save at his near post, five minutes are added as a fairly even first half ends.
Southend go on the attack from the re-start, getting the ball forward quickly using both flanks. Grey has to react well to a half-volley on the edge of the box from top scorer Scott-Morris, tipping it over the bar. From the corner the ball is partially cleared and Grey is there to turn away a deflected effort.
The Iron's first attack of the half is a lightning break, Lisbie and Blackwell are away, Lisbie gets into the box and has a shot which is saved and breaks loose it domes to Blackwell who somehow lets the keeper smother his effort. Southend keep coming and a dangerous right wing cross just evades Boone and it's cleared for a corner before the next blue shirt can reach it.
On 73 minutes Annesley finally has to come off and Pinnington comes on with Clarke-Francis shuffling across to centre back. The Shrimpers best chance sees Scott-Morris with another attempt from just outside the box but he blazes it over the bar. Cooper comes on for Judge on 80 minutes. Braintree make another promising break, a pass forward sees Akinde in a race with a defender, he looks to be winning the race but pulls up clutching his hamstring which sees him replaced by Fyfield.
As Southend pour forward there's another incisive counter from Braintree, the ball comes out to the edge of the box to Cooper but he fires over. With plenty of stoppages and subs 8 minutes of added time is shown, in the first of those Grey does well getting down to save a low shot from Kendall. The Iron manage to see it out under pressure and grab a massive point they earned."
Great report and the sort of thing I used to do years ago on "The fbm view and ratings" thread. Anyone remember them? I was the official SZ match reporter for a few seasons! Time commitments have stopped me doing them like that for years, but they generated thought and discussion about the match itself and not just a stream of abusive posts about how crap the manager is. These days, the post match thread is becoming more toxic and divisive than the old threads trying to get Ron out!
Is there any report or ratings on this thread? I gave up after page 1 of the same old stuff that's posted after every match where we don't win these days.
For me, I think I watched a different match to everyone else.
It was just as frustrating as the previous 2 games, but otherwise a much better match than last week. There was terrific effort, we hit the post, their keeper made a couple of great saves, two and possibly three strong penalty shouts and there were two low undefendable crosses put in that strikers were centimetres away from. If any one of those goes our way, we have a completely different performance and subsequent narrative.
(Note - this is what football is all about. This is why one minute a player will do something that wouldn't be out if place if done by Messi and another will leave you wondering how he is even a professional footballer.)
As for Braintree, their game seem to be very much counter attacking, otherwise lump it up to Akinde and see what happens. Lisbie looked lively but moaned a lot and should have been sent off for simulation in injury time. However, they had their chances as well. They hit the post in the first minute from a free kick, could have scored in each half with two efforts that should have made Hayes work but instead were over the bar, and there was an almighty, old fashioned, goalmouth scramble where somehow Hayes smothered the ball.
So forgive me, but comments from some that that was the worst match they've ever seen are made by people with clearly very short memories. Maidenhead at home? The cup game v Sittingbourne? Please, have a day off. As a game, I've seen far worse. It was however incredibly frustrating, granted.
We were absolutely dominant with possession but many teams come here and use the low block which is unbelievably difficult to play against at any level. We did it (or the equivalent of it) against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the FA Cup years ago. Their team of top internationals couldn't get through us.
The play off dream isn't over - well, not quite - but there's part of me that just wants this to end now so that the three amigos have a full pre-season to get their targets in, get everyone fully fit and then ram every dissenters words down their throats by getting us into L2, or, as is probably more likely, getting to to a point where COSU will make a change so that at last we can stop hearing the same broken record. We're 8th and still in with a shout of the play offs for God's sake, bloody hell, in December we were just as likely to go down! You'd think we'd just been relegated reading some of this stuff, you really would. People, COSU aren't going to get rid of Maher at this point. Get over it.
RATINGS - just for a change.
Hayes - 7 - Good early save from the free kick, quick distribution.
GSM - 6 - Nearly scored with a great effort but he really isn't a good defender. Thank God for his goals and he's probably nailed on POTY, but I think he unbalances us. If someone offered money for him, I'd take it.
Ralph - 8 - Solid, so good in the air. However, his contract is up at the end of the season and I'm wondering if he's been here a bit too long.
Goodliffe - 7 - Harshly got booked after 30 seconds in my opinion but didn't do a lot wrong after that.
Taylor - 8.5 - MOM - Barely put a foot wrong for once (he's usually got some costly mistake in his game) with my only criticism being he sometimes isn't brave enough with the ball and goes for the safe option rather than an attacking option (like many of the players and that's a confidence issue, not the way Maher is telling them to play. Just saying.)
Morton - 6 - Didn't do much, should have done much more.
Husin - 6 - I'm not sure Morton is the best partner for him. An undoubtably good player, but needs a different style of player alongside him to bring the best out of his game. In training, he is awesome but it doesn't always transfer to the matchday.
Coker -5 - Disappointing delivery, passing, shooting and very lucky to stay on the pitch after an awful tackle. Another who looks far better in training than during the game itself.
Bonne - 7 - Incredibly hard working, just doesn't score enough.
Walker - 6 - Did some good bits but was largely anonymous
Parillon - 8 - Our most attacking option. Still raw, still lots to learn, but looked like the only one who was going to make anything happen today.
The ref - 8 - I though he was pretty good. Certainly consistent and let pretty much everything go. He got some decisions wrong of course, but everyone does that.
