Match Preview | Braintree Town (H)

Forest Green Rovers welcome Braintree Town to The New Lawn this weekend.

The Essex-based side were relegated on Easter Monday, their fate confirmed by a 0–0 draw at home to Woking, which ended The Iron’s nine-year stay in the National League.

Rovers, meanwhile, need just a point and for Halifax to drop points to mathematically secure a play-off spot. However, given the current league standings, it would take extreme circumstances for Rovers to fall out of the play-off places now.

Rovers come into this fixture having taken four points from a possible six from Easter weekend. Their most recent result was a draw away at already relegated Truro City, where they were reduced to ten men before taking the lead through Tom Knowles, only for the hosts to equalise six minutes from time.

The Opposition: Braintree Town

Nickname: ‘The Iron’
League Position: 23rd

Braintree confirmed their relegation on Easter Monday after a draw at home to Woking proved insufficient to keep them in the division. It has been a difficult campaign for the Essex side, who have won just twice in the calendar year, those victories coming against fellow strugglers Truro City and Eastleigh.

Despite their position, Braintree have remained competitive and have proven difficult to beat at times. They pushed high-flying York close earlier in the season and also ran Boreham Wood tight, while earning draws against Scunthorpe and Forest Green Rovers.

In the Dugout: Steve Pitt

Steve Pitt is the current man in charge of The Iron. He took over from caretaker manager Justin Moseley midway through the 2024/25 season, having previously worked at the club as an assistant.

Pitt guided Braintree to a 17th-place finish last season, easing any relegation concerns, and was given a full pre-season to prepare for this campaign. However, results have not gone their way this year, and a poor run in the second half of the season ultimately brought an end to their nine-year stay in the National League.

Player to Watch: Lewis Walker

Striker Lewis Walker has been Braintree’s key attacking threat this season. The 26-year-old has scored eight goals, including recent strikes against top-seven sides Carlisle and Scunthorpe, with three goals in his last six appearances.

Walker spent the previous two seasons with Woking, scoring 15 goals in 63 appearances across all competitions.

With Abraham Kanu ruled out for the remainder of the season, Robbie Savage will need to find a solution to fill the void and keep Walker quiet.

Head-to-Head

Forest Green Rovers and Braintree Town have been evenly matched across their last five meetings, with both sides claiming victories and the remaining fixtures ending in draws.

21/01/2017 - Rovers 1-1 Braintree (Clough 59)

19/10/2024 - Rovers 2-1 Braintree (Cardwell 34 & McAllister 88)

07/12/2024 - Braintree 1-1 Rovers (3-5 on pens) (May 65)

15/02/2025 - Braintree 2-0 Rovers

30/8/2025 – Braintree 0-0 Rovers