BRAINTREE Town learnt how cruel a game football can be on Saturday as they lost 1-0 at Halifax Town to a goal in time added on.
It was particularly harsh on the Iron who had dominated the second half, but left West Yorkshire with nothing to show for their efforts.
It left manager Alan Devonshire frustrated that his side controlled the game so well but lost out in the dying seconds when home substitute Jamie Jackson dived low to head in a right wing cross in the 91st minute..
"I'm absolutely gutted for all the players who put so much into the game, stuck to our game plan and then get caught by a sucker- punch right in the final seconds of the game," Devonshire explained. "We gave the ball away unnecessarily on the halfway line through an individual mistake and it was pumped out to the right and the lad somehow managed to get in between our defenders to score.
"I can't criticise the players because they gave me everything and I felt we were well in control in the second and deserved to get something out of the game.
"We had three really decent chances then and we didn't take them and in the end it cost us the game.
"It was frustrating because we always looked the more likely side to score and our keeper (Nic Hamann) didn't have a direct shot to stop all afternoon - just come and take the crosses which he did, but we have to learn to take those chances, we should have had the game wrapped up before they scored in the 91st minute."
After a dreadful first half by both sides with little creative football, which would have been hard on an appalling surface roughed up by the town's rugby league side who share the stadium, the Iron put their act to together after the interval.
Playing with five across the middle of the park and Sean Marks as the sole striker, Devonshire's plan worked a treat and on the hour they should have taken the lead when Simeon Akinola weaved his way through into the area only for his shot to hold up in the mud but the ball rebounded kindly to Chez Isaac who lifted it just over the bar.
Ten minutes later they had another chance thanks to a surging run from the back by Remy Clerima who threaded the ball to Marks, but unfortunately he shot straight at home keeper Matt Glennon .
Two minutes later another chance went begging when again Akinola look all set to score having run into a good position, but his shot was tame and straight at Glennon.
The further the game went on it looked more like a repeat of last season's visit to the Shay when the Iron returned with a point from a draw, but it all went horribly wrong in the first of five minutes of stoppage time when Jackson popped up to head home Jack Muldoon's cross.
It was the second week running that Jackson had scored a stoppage time winner for the home side - he did the same to beat Dover Athletic 3-2 - but that was little consolation for the Iron.
Devonshire, whilst not criticising any individual player, said at such a late stage they should have ensured the ball kept well up in the home side's half of the pitch and not give it away so cheaply as they paid the price.
Braintree Town: Hamann; Brundle, Habergham, Massey, Clerima; Isaac, Paine, Davis, Sparks (Mensah 70); Akinola, Marks. Unused subs: Maybanks, Pullen, Peters, Pentney.
Attendance: 1,268 (45 Iron fans)
