Ely City boss Brady Stone was relieved to see his side move out of the Thurlow Nunn Premier Division relegation zone last weekend.

The Robins hoisted themselves clear of the drop zone thanks to a 2-2 draw with Brantham Athletic at the Unwin.

The visitors took the lead on a soggy afternoon in Ely but Alex Theobald levelled from the spot before the break – his 12th goal in 20 games.

The Robins looked set to have nicked all three points after Matty Simpson’s neat strike, but Brantham netted a late equaliser.

Brantham’s late leveller meant that Ely will have to wait another week to attempt to find their first three points since early October, but boss Stone, pictured left, said he was pleased to see his men take a point off a side sitting 10 place above them in the standings.

“It was disappointing to concede in the 90th minute but I think the draw was the right result,” he said.

“I think we had a bit of a FA Vase hangover. It was like a pre-season game in the rain – very slow and both sides couldn’t really get going.”

“We had a good chat with the boys at half-time and came out really well in the second half.

“If you can’t get three points then you have to try and get one, and that’s what we got.

“We’re still in the mix and we just need to keep picking up points whenever we can.”

Next up for Ely is a trip to the coast to take on FC Clacton (3pm).

The Essex outfit have struggled for form this term and sit rock bottom of the division, but will be buoyed by their 2-0 Long Melford last weekend.

Their success was only their second of the season, but Stone says he won’t be underestimating The Seasiders on Saturday afternoon.

“They got a good result last weekend and I know they’ve signed a lot of players recently,” Stone said.

“We’ve read the report on them and know they play direct, so we’ll set up to deal with that and can hopefully come away with the win.”