Match report by Simon Williams. Photos by Amanda Protheroe.
Billericay continued their pre-season campaign with the visit of Conference South outfit Braintree Town on Tuesday. With a number of players on both sides having moved between the clubs over the summer, there was a definite sense of familiarity between the teams and perhaps that is why they largely cancelled each other out for long spells.
The Blues kept with largely the same group of players as in previous games, albeit with a slight change to the starting eleven where Russell Pond was preferred to Nick Muir in midfield. Pond played alongside former Braintree player Mick Shinn in front of the back four, allowing Jamie Dormer to venture forwards in his playmaker role.
Having conceded eight goals in their first two friendlies, Billericay were clearly keen to improve at the back, and looked a much better defensive side early on. The visitors had the better of the early pressure, but Ian Wiles and Ian Cousins handled the dangerous Sean Marks well. Marks was involved in all of Braintree's best moments in the first half and had their best chance when he beat 'keeper Dean Neil to a cross only to head over.
Billericay gradually got more into the game and began to put together a few passing moves of their own. Braintree 'keeper Nick Morgan was seldom troubled, although Billy Bricknell did test him with a diving header from a Dave Wareham cross.
Both sides made changes at the break, with Billericay introducing youngsters Harrison Chatting and Luka Frankis to the attack. The game largely continued in the same pattern as in the first half, with neither side really able to dominate.
Things only really started to open up in the final quarter of an hour of the game. Shinn set the tone with a stinging drive that Morgan did well to push away. Shinn then opened the scoring with a direct free kick that took a slight deflection on it's way into the net.
The lead was short lived when Bradley Quinton took a free kick that Neil seemed to have saved, but was unable to prevent crossing the line as he fell to earth.
A draw was probably a fair result on the balance of play, and Billericay boss Brian Statham will no doubt, be satisfied with the progress made so far in pre-season.
