A week after scoring two goals in the last ten minutes to salvage a point, the reverse happened at Earlsmead on Saturday. Borough were cruising along at 2-0 after 80 minutes, but two late goals gave the visitors a point.

Edwin Stein played a bold team selection, with three forwards deployed against a team looking for its first away point. A nice build-up in the first minute ended with Richard Clarke shooting wide. A good tackle by Hayter then stopped Michael Currie as he burst through the middle.

The giant Cowan then met a corner with a goalbound header that Andy Pape held at the second attempt, but most of the early pressure came from Harrow. Davis Haule’s 25-yarder was saved, Mekel Hackett cut in from the left and shot across goal, and John Lawford twice spun in the box to fire over the bar. At the other end, Haule intercepted a dangerous Braintree break after Noble had rounded Phil Gridelet.

Borough made the breakthrough after 37 minutes. Clarke played the ball forward but Hayter cushioned the ball back to keeper Catley. Richard Goddard closed in, and Catley must have taken his eye off the ball, as he spilled it into Goddard’s path and the tall striker ran the ball into the empty net. Goddard might have scored a second immediately afterwards, but miscued his shot. Clarke and Lawford shot over as Harrow ended the half well on top.

Jones shot over for Braintree at the start of the second half but Harrow continued to control the game. Currie headed wide from Lawford’s corner and Hackett shot into the side-netting after a nice interchange between Currie and Goddard.

Goddard and Lawford set up Hackett for a shot that brought a brilliant diving save by Catley. Braintree had just begun to get into the game, with Pape making a good save from Jones’s 20-yarder and Girling firing over after Everitt’s misdirected header, when Harrow’s striking partnership were responsible for Harrow doubling their lead after 69 minutes. Goddard headed on Pape’s goal-kick for Lawford to go through to stroke the ball past Catley.

Lawford was close to a third Harrow goal, hitting a fierce shot just over the bar, and Braintree appeared to be getting a little disarrayed, although Wayne Walters made a great block at a visiting forward’s feet. But things changed after 80 minutes. Fabio Valenti lost the ball deep in the Braintree half and the visitors broke on the right The retreating Harrow defence was sucked across to the left and when the ball was played across to the overlapping left-back Jones, he was able to advance unmolested and beat Pape from 20 yards.

No sooner was it 2-1, than it was 2-2. In the 82nd minute, a long-throw was back-headed and Cousins smashed the ball in from ten yards. It might have been even worse five minutes later when substitute Defoe shot just wide.

Valenti shot past the post from Everitt’s cross, as Harrow tried to make up for their lapses, but they were left to rue two points lost. With two difficult games coming up this week, concentration will need to be for the whole 90 minutes.

  1 - Andy Pape
  2 - Michael Currie
   (sub Fabio Valenti 62)
  3 - Adam Everitt
  4 - Richard Clarke
  5 - Phil Gridelet
  6 - Dean Marney
  7 - Wayne Walters
  8 - Davis Haule
  9 - John Lawford
10 - Richard Goddard
   (sub Anton Innocent 75)
11 - Mekel Hackett
   (sub Robert Charles 90)