Bromley went down to their second straight league defeat but only after a late wonder strike won the game for title chasing Dagenham & Redbridge and denied Bromley what would have been a well deserved point.

Dagenham had failed to take advantage of Lincoln’s FA Cup exploits by losing at home to Guiseley on Saturday and got off to a poor start here as Bromley took the lead in the 7^th minute when powerful striker Brandon Hanlon struck with a shot which the Daggers keeper couldn’t hold.

Bromley came close to adding to their lead most notably when Hanlon hit the post but were pegged back five minutes before half time when Fejiri Okenabirhie fired home to make it 1-1 at half time.

Bromley were fairly comfortable throughout the second half which saw few real chances at either end but Dagenham won the game in the 88^th minute when Jake Sheppard stunning strike from twenty five yards gave Ross Flitney no chance in the Bromley goal.

There were two changes to Neil Smith’s side from the one which lost at home to Solihull Moors on Saturday with Louis Dennis and Bradley Goldberg coming in for Connor Dymond and George Porter.

The game got off to a lively start on a pitch which has been criticised by Daggers boss John Still but seemed perfectly fine.  Dagenham came close to scoring in the second minute when after a neat passing build up Okenabirhie set up Jordan Maguire-Drew who fired over the top from just outside the penalty area.

It was Bromley though that made the early breakfhrough when Hanlon made a bursting run down the right hand side and took on defender Craig Robson, cut into the area and drilled a low cross shot which keeper Elliot Justham got his hands too but couldn’t prevent going into the bottom left corner of the net.

Bromley played with a composed and confident air after this marshalled superbly by centre halves Ben Chorley and Jack Holland.  Alan Dunne and Lee Minshull added some steel to go with the pace of Louis Dennis, and Blair Turgott who were causing the home side a few problems and Goldberg was putting some crosses into the area which had to be desperately cleared.  Dagenham had a lot of possession but the final ball seemed to let them down.  They had a half hearted appeal for a penalty when Jake Howells ball into the box from the left hit Alan Dunne but was quite rightly deemed not to be a handball.

Half way through the half, Bromley won a corner down the left and Turgott’s ball into the box was met by Holland but couldn’t steer his header on target.  Two minutes later Turgott set up Jordan Higgs for a shot from distance which went over the bar.  Then in the 25^th minute, Goldberg down the left cut inside and curled in a shot which narrowly wide of the right post with the keeper struggling.

Chances continued to fall Bromley’s way and just before the half hour another strong burst of pace from Hanlon down the right saw him in a similar position to which he scored but this time his shot at the near post was held by Justham.  Three minutes later, it was Turgott’s time to curl a shot just wide with a stinging drive.

In the 33^rd minute, Hanlon who was giving Robson a torrid time at the back, stole in front of the defender and his shot from a narrow angle came back off the foot of a post.  It was starting to look like it was going to be one of those nights as Bromley couldn’t get that second goal which they deserved at that stage.

However, Dagenham who had come up against a resolute wall of yellow whenever they attacked drew level five minutes before half time.  A strong run down the left by Shaun Donnellan saw him play the ball across to Oliver Hawkins who laid the ball off as Flitney hesitated to Okenabirhie who stole in to blast the ball high into the top left corner to make it 1-1.

This led to a more concerted period of pressure from the home side who won three corners in quick succession which Bromley were able to withstand.  Before the break there was still time for Turgott to fire in a shot which narrowly went past the left post.

Half Time:  1-1

If the first half was an exciting affair then the second half was the opposite with the game becoming rather scrappy.

Dagenham had a semblance of a chance to take the lead when Maguire-Drew pounced on a rare mistake by Chorley but his shot from just inside the area was comfortably held by Flitney.

Bromley continued to defend well and looked confident going forward when they got the opportunity.  In the 54^th minute they should really have gone back in front when a swift breakaway saw Minshull and Turgott combine to play in Goldberg down the right of the penalty area but he rather lost composure with his final finish and fired over the bar.

Aside from the hardworking Hawkins and the pacy Okenabirhie Dagenham were not really threatening and the home crowd were starting to get frustrated with their efforts.

Bromley had a shooting opportunity when they were awarded a free kick just outside the penalty area after a foul on Turgott in the 69^th minute.  However, Dennis fired the free kick well over the bar.  They also won a couple of corners and had one or two close offside calls go against them.

With the game entering the last ten minutes, Dagenham started to raise the tempo a little more and Sheppard’s ball into the box from the right fell to Paul Benson but he couldn’t get sufficient power on his header and Flitney was able to claim the ball,   This was followed by a free kick in a central position twenty five yards out which was struck by Frankie Raymond and deflected off the wall and behind for a corner.

It looked like the game was heading for what would have been a merited draw for the Ravens but there was drama to come when in the 88^th minute, Hawkins set up Sheppard who from fully twenty five yards crashed in an unstoppable shot which flew into the net to the relief of the Dagenham and Redbridge fans.

Despite four minutes of injury time Bromley couldn’t summon up the sufficient energy to grab an equaliser and after a fine performance ultimately came away with a narrow defeat.

The win keeps Dagenham and Redbrige in second place but remain three points behind leaders Lincoln City who won at North Ferriby who are on 67 points but have played two games less.  Tranmere Rovers moved into third place with a 2-1 home win over Braintree and promises to be an exciting title run in.   Bromley remain in a position of some comfort in eleventh place and are on their travels again on Saturday when they take on eighth placed Aldershot Town.

They can certainly look back on a satisfactory night and performance and showed how competitive this league is and will be for the remaining weeks.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge:  Elliot Justham, Joe Widdowson, Craig Robson (Capt.), Shaun Donnellan, Jake Howells (Paul Benson, 57), Andre Boucard, Frankie Raymond, Jake Sheppard, Jordan Maguire-Drew (Josh Staunton, 78), Fejiri Okenabirhie, Oliver Hawkins (Scott Doe, 90+2).

Subs not used:  Mark Cousins, Ray Grant

Booked:  Hawkins 46

 

Bromley:  Ross Flitney,  Ben Chorley, Alan Dunne, Jordan Higgs, Jack Holland (Capt.), Joe Anderson, Lee Minshull, Blair Turgott, Louis Dennis, Bradley Goldberg (Tobi Sho-Silva, 73), Brandon Hanlon.

Subs not used:  Jordan Wynter, Daniel Johnson, Connor Dymond, Michak Stanic-Stewart

Booked:   Minshull 86

 

Referee:          Mr. C. Brook

Assistants:     Mr. N. Dunn, Mr. S. Ogles

4^th Official:       Mr. T. Marshall

 

Attendance:   1,202