Report: Iron 3-2 Brackley Town

The Iron got their 2025 home campaign underway at the Attis Arena on Tuesday evening when they welcomed promotion hopefuls Brackley Town to the Attis Arena for a highly anticipated rearranged fixture.

The Saints came into the encounter in fine form with four victories in a row, including an impressive 1-0 triumph over promotion contenders Curzon Ashton. However, despite Brackley’s form, Scunthorpe were positive coming into the encounter due to having just one loss in their previous nine games.

United went unchanged for their fixture with the Saints, allowing a home debut for loanee Oliver Rose who was chosen to start proceedings on the right of Scunthorpe’s defence. Elsewhere there was the possibility of another home debutant in the form of winger Mo Fadera. The Gambian made a positive impact against Chorley at the weekend and his electric pace was bound to play a part in the latter stages of the game.

The Iron got the game under way under the lights of the Attis Arena and set about breaking down their opponents with a number of fast paced attacks that put the Saints immediately onto the back foot.

After an entertaining first 10 minutes of possession-based football, United believed they had broken the deadlock through the in-form Danny Whitehall. It was magic man Cal Roberts who created the chance for Scunthorpe when he stormed down the right and pulled the ball back to Alfie Beestin in the penalty area. Beestin came steaming onto the cross and saw his shot well saved by Shrewsbury loanee Joe Young, but the goalkeeper could only push the ball back into the path of Whitehall who tapped the ball into the open goal. However, the strikers’ celebrations were short lived as assistant referee Martin Beard raised his flag to disallow the goal.

The next opportunity in the game would be created by the visitor’s courtesy of a long ball over the top of the Scunthorpe defence. The hopeful knock forward would find the outstretched boot of forward Matt Lowe who did superbly well to direct the ball past the onrushing Ross Fitzsimons, however the effort trickled marginally wide of the post much to Scunthorpe’s relief.

As the half progressed the possession began to even out over time and Brackley would again come close to a goal on the half-hour mark through the electric Lowe. The winger broke in behind the Scunthorpe defence and made a desperate effort to steal the ball past Fitzsimons and did so with a brilliant dink. As the ball trickled past the Scunthorpe goalkeeper it was carefully watched by the recovering Maxim Kouogun, who diffused the situation with a comfortable clearance.

The Iron wouldn’t be made to wait much longer for the opening goal of proceedings as Beestin refused to be denied this time around. After collecting possession 20 yards from goal the 27-year-old would chop two players out of the game with a swift turn that opened up a yard of space for him to sting an effort at goal, the shot was struck sweetly and snuck beneath Young on its way into the bottom corner, hence opening the scoring.

This was to be the final action of the first half from which Scunthorpe had taken a deserved lead. When the sides returned for the second period United would attack with the same ferocity as the opening half with Roberts pulling the strings early on.

The winger Roberts has been in fabulous form of late and continued this in the opening minutes of the second half when he nearly sent the Scunthorpe faithful into the rafters again. As often the case Roberts wandered inside off his favoured right-wing, as he twisted and turned to open some space the forward would let a brilliant shot fly that was destined for the top corner if not for the fantastic intervention of Young who sprung to his left to deny the shot.

Scunthorpe were playing some excellent free-flowing football to start the second half and would capitalise on their dominance by scoring their second goal of the evening. After Rose’s cross found the feet of Whitehall in the area the in-form striker drove an effort towards the bottom corner that ricocheted back off the far post and bounced back into play, the bounce would be a fortunate one for Scunthorpe as it found Maxim Kouogun in acres of space who was presented an easy finish to double the host’s lead.

United’s two-goal advantage wouldn’t last long however, as the visiting Saints struck back almost instantly. It would be a disappointing goal for Scunthorpe to concede as one direct pass down the channel found Lowe’s disguised run into the final third, with nobody able to catch the former Accrington Stanley man he made no mistake in smashing the ball beyond Fitzsimons to halve the deficit.

It was goals, goals, goals so far in the second half and another one would soon follow for the Iron in the 77th minute. When the ball hit the net nobody in attendance was more relieved than substitute Mark Beck who grabbed his first goal in claret and blue in the scrappiest of fashions. It was Beck’s darting run into the area that allowed him to meet a low cross to the back post and despite being under huge pressure to finish the chance the experienced forward clipped the ball over Young and into the corner to restore his side's two-goal advantage.

As per usual, the Iron were being pushed to the max in this encounter and the final 10 minutes would be made that little bit more interesting when the visitors dragged back a scrappy goal of their own. Although Fitzsimons produced an amazing save to deny striker Connor Hall at the first attempt the forward would get a second bite of the cherry when possession pin balled back to him at close range, hence providing Brackley’s top scorer with a simple finish to make it 3-2.

Despite the slender score line Scunthorpe thrived as the game came to its close and proved strong-willed in defence to see off their visitors. Although Brackley would have some set-piece chances late on referee Niall Smith would condemn them to their first defeat in five games by sounding his whistle for the final time and giving the Iron a much-needed victory that propels them within touching distance of the top of the National League North tree.

IRON: Fitzsimons, Kouogun, Boyce, Clunan, Beestin (Beck, 73'), Whitehall (Fadera, 84'), Roberts (Evans, 90+3'), Rowley (Ubaezuonu, 89'), Scales, Denton, Rose.

IRON UNUSED SUBS: Law.