A goal in each half from Aryan Tajbakhsh saw Braintree Town to a 2-0 friendly victory over the Blues at Cressing Road.

Town manager Paul Hurst named a strong starting XI but with the whole travelling squad playing a part as is usual at this stage of pre-season.

Missing were striker Joe Garner, who is understood to have picked up a minor knock, while Emyr Huws and Tom Adeyemi were presumably not considered ready for match action. Teddy Bishop, who is a couple of weeks away from full training, watched the game from the stand.

Trevoh Chalobah is currently with the England U19s, while striker Ben Morris was also missing and is also believed to be with the Young Lions ahead of the Euros in Finland. Bartosz Bialkowski and Jonas Knudsen are still away following the World Cup.

In sweltering conditions, Martyn Waghorn hit an early effort not too far over from distance. Last season’s 16-goal top scorer was in a role behind new signing Jordan Roberts playing as a lone striker, with Freddie Sears on the left and Grant Ward on the right. Cole Skuse and Flynn Downes were the deeper central midfielders in front of the back four.

On seven, Christie Pattison broke down the centre, just to the right and hit a low 20-yard shot which Dean Gerken did well to push past his post. From the corner, Olu Durojaiye diverted the ball on to the bar at the near post.

Five minutes later, the Vanarama National side took the lead. Dan Thompson appeared to foul Downes midway inside the Town half and Tajbakhsh struck a low well-placed shot to Gerken’s left.

The Essex side went close to doubling their lead soon afterwards when Tajbakhsh crossed and Michael Clark headed over, then Blues skipper Luke Chambers diverted Pattison’s low ball from the right over. From the corner, Gerken turned Josh Hill’s header over.

On the half hour, Pattison’s curling effort from just outside the area was deflected wide with the home side having had the better of the opening third of the match.

The Iron should have added to their lead on 32 when Pattison crossed from the left and found Thompson, who somehow diverted it the wrong side of the post fro six yards when it was easier to score.

New boy Roberts headed Town’s first effort on target into the arms of Braintree keeper Nathan McDonald on 34 with the Blues having struggled to dictate the game despite having tried to pass the ball when they’d had it, although on an unhelpful bumpy surface.

Two minutes later Waghorn tried to catch McDonald unawares with a chipped effort from distance but the ball sailed a few feet over the bar

The Blues, with Sears now on the right and Ward on the left, began to make some headway in the half’s final minutes and on 38 Roberts teed-up Waghorn on the edge of the box and the former Rangers man hit a low effort wide.

Neither team threatened again before the break with the home side having been the better side and having had chances to be more than a goal in front.

Ahead of the second half, Luke Woolfenden and Tristan Nydam took over from Josh Emmanuel and Downes with Jordan Spence moving to right-back.

Nydam immediately made an impression, striking a powerful shot not too far wide from the edge of the box two minutes after the restart.

On 52, after good work from Spence on the right, Sears, now down the middle with Roberts on the left and Ward the right, stabbed a low effort goalwards and McDonald turned it round the post. From the corner, Chambers flicked Waghorn’s ball into the box across the face and wide.

Town had begun to move the ball around much more fluently and in the 56th minute Waghorn’s clever pass fed in Roberts, whose shot was well-saved by McDonald. Soon after, Waghorn scuffed a low effort to McDonald.

But in the 64th minute the Iron went two in front. Waghorn fouled Marcel Barrington not far outside the box and Tajbakhsh curled a brilliant freekick just inside Gerken’s left post.

Town immediately made the expected wholesale changes with Harry Wright coming on in goal, Barry Cotter at right-back, Corrie Ndaba joining Woolfenden at the centre of the defence and at left-back former Braintree loanee Pat Webber.

In midfield, Brett McGavin joined Nydam with Conor McKendry and Ben Folami wide and Andre Dozzell behind striker Aaron Drinan.

The Blues had been on top prior to the goal and mass changes after which it took the game a few minutes to settle down.

Despite Town having most of the possession, the home side came close to another goal in the 80th minute but Reece Grant lofted the ball over both Wright and the bar.

With five minutes remaining ex-Blues left-back Ben Wyatt curled a goal-bound freekick which Wright did well to get reach and tip wide.

Wright, the son of former Blue Richard, was in action again two minutes later, when he diverted Mahrez Bettache’s freekick over.

Town were unable to threaten in the closing stages and fell to a defeat which, on the balance of the first half, was well deserved.

The Blues improved after the break and the second Braintree goal came against the run of play before the match drifted following the late subs.

However, despite the result, manager Hurst will have found the game a useful exercise as he assesses and shapes his squad ahead of the season proper with the role Waghorn played off the main striker a talking point, a position taken up by Dozzell when he came on.

Town are next in action against Crawley at East Grinstead on Tuesday evening.

Braintree: McDonald (Trialist 73), Muleba (Grant 73), Wyatt, Durojaiye (Muleba 83), Hill (Frimpong 65), Clark (Ellull 46), Barrington (Bettache 73), Crook (Barker 65), Thompson (Rapai 60), Tajbakhsh (Mensah 71), Pattinson.

Town: Gerken (Wright 65), Emmanuel (Woolfenden 46), Spence (Cotter 65), Chambers (c) (Ndaba 65), Kenlock (Webber 65), Skuse (Dozzell 65), Downes (Nydam 46), Ward (McKendry 65), Sears (Folami 65), Waghorn (McGavin 65), Roberts (Drinan 65). Att: 581.

Photo: Pagepix

BrettenhamBlue added 16:52 - Jul 14 Only a pre-season game, but I watched Colchester Utd beat Braintree 5-0 a few days ago at Braintree. I thought this would be a landslide victory for us. However, we offered next to nothing up front and this could have been a 4-0 to Braintree.
5

WebbyWebster added 16:54 - Jul 14 Sign that goal scorer up
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midastouch added 17:02 - Jul 14 Poor show!
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MrJase77 added 17:04 - Jul 14 Did I read that right, he's really playing Sears wide??! Please for the love of god no.
16

blueblood_soldier added 17:07 - Jul 14 So let me get this right.. we played the winger as a lone striker, the striker as a winger and lost 2.0 to a side Colchester beat 5.0 last week!! Emmmm concerning...
6

Talbs77 added 17:10 - Jul 14 I am not going to lose too much sleep on this result. I remember when we went up in 91/92 we lost every pre season game.
3

meekreech added 17:13 - Jul 14 Good to see that our new manager is playing people in their own positions.
1

Battyboy added 17:20 - Jul 14 Embarrassing today.
4

jas0999 added 17:21 - Jul 14 I'm sorry, this may only be pre season, but the result shows how much more work the owner of the football club needs to do in less than three weeks. We are so short of quality and numbers in key positions it's worrying. Yes, we have players out injured, but they are the same players who always appear to be injured - so can we rely on them? This is a reality check. Evans has to bring players in sooner rather than later.

7

grinch added 17:24 - Jul 14 its a friendly for gods sake and thr manager wants to see players in different roles what an over reaction ...i really hope supportets are not thinking top 6 finish this season let the man have a couple of seasons to get this correct be patient it will be required theze ate meaningless games to get fitness and game plays strengthened
6

muccletonjoe added 17:55 - Jul 14 Not a terrific start. Especially when those players are trying to impress a new manager. Let's hope reinforcements are on the way
0

afcfee added 17:58 - Jul 14 Careful what you wish for! I bet Mick is laughing at us already. Leauge 1 bound?
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jas0999 added 18:07 - Jul 14 Grinch - you do raise a good point. Top six is certainly not a realistic target this year. But we certainly don't want to be worse than last season in terms of finish. At the moment though, the squad is nowhere near as good as last season owing to so many key men moving on or returning to parent clubs.
3

algarvefan added 18:14 - Jul 14 Oh dear God, with key players still away or not yet match fit here come the merchants of doom again, it's just like Mick never left. It's the same every preseason. There are always strange results this time of year, we have a new manager, learning about his players, their ability to play in different positions and with wholesale changes it was never about the result. Please give the new management team time to settle in, remember a certain Sir Bobby Robson having a really rough start and fans calling for his head after just a handful of league games and look what he achieved. I'm behind the new manager and his team and they have my support to do a good job, there was never going to be new money, bite your tongue, one pre-season game doesn't define our season.

7

Bert added 18:38 - Jul 14 Regretably I saw nothing today at Braintree that filled me with hope. Apart from Waghorn and Dozzell we offered very little against a fit and eager non league side. It is too early to make any judgement but we most certainly need reinforcements. Well done Braintree and best wishes Paul Hurst who has a job on his hands. That said MM had to go !
2

shefkuqi32 added 19:21 - Jul 14 People need to chill the out hell, wow. It's the second pre-season friendly, hardly really anything more than a training, test phase for a new manager to assess. All this worry about the new season already. The World Cup hasn't even finished and the new season is well over three weeks ago, plenty of time to be ready. Please don't seriously question the new manager.
5

Lathers added 19:40 - Jul 14 OMG... call the Priest for Hurst's last rites! Let's cut the boy some slack. He's getting to know the squad and trying to do things differently to what went previously.... which is what the majority wanted?! Today was no different to the shambles out in Ireland this time last year. If we lose to West Ham then maybe we start panicking... 😉
2

toxtethblue added 19:53 - Jul 14 the result shows how much more work the owner of the football club needs to do in less than three weeks. We are so short of quality and numbers in key positions it's worrying. Yes, we have players out injured, but they are the same players who always appear to be injured - so can we rely on them? This is a reality check. Evans has to bring players in sooner rather than later. Err are you calling Mr Evans backing into question?! Some of you have short memories, it wasn't long ago he answered some questions and he showed us his kids and everything for Christ's sake!! Surely that deserves another 5 seasons of under investment and stagnation at least!!?

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toxtethblue added 19:55 - Jul 14 What on earth is wrong with Huws and TA?! They seem to have been injured forever.
0

Oldsmoker added 20:18 - Jul 14 The squad is 1 year older and 1 year wiser than at this time last year. Doesn't seem like it.
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shakytown added 01:57 - Jul 15 Toxtethblue. Why play when you can get paid for sitting on you butt. Huws is overrated anyway and who knows what Adeyami is like because he has never played for us. Both sadly are overrated leftovers from other clubs who we have been lumbered with . As for Bishop his contract should have been terminated last season.
-2

trncbluearmy added 08:38 - Jul 15 Couldn't careless if ITFC lost every pre season friendly,they are just simple an exercise in experiment,fitness,shape and with a new manager getting to know players strengths and weaknesses. He will have found out Spence is no CB,Skuse, whilst still a good squad player, will have a less important role,one or two cannot be relied on 100% and one or two will give you 100% no matter what. I f I remember rightly the pre-season under GB the season we went up was pretty awful.

1

inghamspur added 10:47 - Jul 15 Only a friendly but no matter what team you put out, should still manage to at least score against a side 3 divisions lower. Having said that, remember losing 6-1 to Charlton in the final friendly last season and feeling very concerned but then went on to have one of the best starts to a season, which was totally unexpected.
0

dirtydingusmagee added 10:54 - Jul 15 that didn't go very well !
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