Braintree Town secured their first National League Cup win of the season with a 2-1 victory over Fulham under-21s at Cressing Road. A late goal from Alexander-Leonard Bolovan proved decisive after the visitors had cancelled out Vladimir Paternoster's first-half opener.
Manager's verdict
Manager Steve Pitt felt his side's performance merited an even bigger winning margin. "I think we fully deserved it on the night and played some fine, attacking and aggressive football and I am only disappointed we didn’t win by a bigger margin," Pitt told the Braintree & Witham Times. He had made several changes to the side that triumphed at Slough Town just days earlier, but the team still created numerous clear chances.
How the game unfolded
Vladimir Paternoster gave Braintree the lead after 18 minutes, but Fulham's under-21s equalised just past the hour mark through J. Kusi Asare. The home side responded strongly, with Bolovan restoring the lead with nine minutes remaining. The Fulham goalkeeper was then forced into a series of excellent saves in the closing moments to keep the scoreline respectable in front of a crowd of 199.
Building momentum
This cup success adds to a positive run of form for Braintree, who have now won three consecutive matches across all competitions. Their most recent league outing was a 2-1 home win over leaders Maidstone United, a result that lifted them to 18th place in the National League South table with 10 points from seven games.
The team has scored 11 goals in the league so far but conceded 15, leaving them with a goal difference of minus four. They currently sit nine points behind Maidstone at the top. Their next fixture is a Boxing Day trip to face Chelmsford City, who are 14th in the table. The full schedule is available on our fixtures page.
With confidence growing, Pitt will now look to integrate the squad's depth, as shown in this cup tie, into their league campaign. The win provides a timely boost ahead of the busy festive period.
Braintree's 2-1 win over Maidstone United on September 12 was secured by a late brace from A. Matthews. He equalised in the 64th minute and scored a penalty 15 minutes later, according to official data. This extends their winning run to three games across all competitions. Their recent form now reads three wins, one draw and one loss from their last five matches.
