Magpies claim fourth straight clean sheet in goalless draw with Ravens

Nathan Ashmore in action against Woking earlier this season

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Bromley 0, Maidenhead United 0

Maidenhead United kept their fourth consecutive clean sheet to claim a deserved point from Monday's trip to Bromley.

Coming into the game the Ravens hadn't been in the best of form, going 10 league matches without a win prior to Friday's restorative 2-0 away win at Eastleigh, while the Magpies made sure of their National League survival with a convincing 2-0 win over Weymouth on Friday.

In the final match of his loan move from Boreham Wood, Nathan Ashmore was again in unbeatable form as the Magpies moved 17 points clear of the drop zone.

However, the focus is now firmly on the teams above them, rather than the skirmishes below, with the Magpies just five points adrift of 12th placed Yeovil Town with four matches left to play.

They now have 12 days to prepare for their next game at Torquay United on April 30 before they host Aldershot Town at York Road the following Monday (May 2).

Maidenhead began the game brightly, winning a succession of corners from which Sam Beckwith stung the palms of Balcombe.

Ashmore did well to keep out a close-range header from Cheek in the sixth minute before United forced a couple more chances, with Josh Kelly firing into the side netting after racing in from the left and Balcombe clawing away a firm header from Kane Ferdinand.

Dennis then struck the post as the action swung back down the other end and the topsy-turvy nature of the game continued with Kelly harrying the Bromley defence and rolling a shot just wide of the post.

All these chances came in the opening 25 minutes and the Magpies will feel they should really have gone in at the break with the lead after Nathan Blissett's low shot was pawed out by Balcombe in the 32nd minute. The visitors also had the ball in the net before the break, after good work from Kelly and Blissett but the effort was chalked off for offside.

The chance of the game fell the hosts way in the 50th minute, Cheek blazing over the bar after Ashmore had failed to gather in Al-Hamadi's initial effort.

The game settled down a little in the closing stages, with both sides perhaps happy to settle for a point, however, United rattled the crossbar in the 79th minute through Ferdinand's firm header. Cawley made a last-ditch challenge to deny Shawn McCoulsky late on, but the points were shared at Hayes Lane, and, after a hectic schedule during which the Magpies ensured safety, they'll welcome a little rest before the season's final four matches.