The Bloaters travelled to Essex without the services of Ager, Perfect, Ford, Roots, McAra and Savage but welcomed back Costandachi against bottom side Wivenhoe.

The hosts, under the guidance of ex-Bundesliga-pro and new manager Chris Hudson, included a few new faces as they looked to climb the table.

The Bloaters started well and got their noses in front in the 13th minute. From a defensive mistake, Sanders’ corner found Mitch Forbes who rose highest to plant a firm header into the net.

The visitors continued to probe, with Davis and Lewis both narrowly missing the target before Hudson made an early substitution which almost paid dividends as Whatmough was forced into a save. The Bloaters almost doubled their lead when Costandachi’s header was cleared off the line after a foul on Holmes.

Then, with the half-time whistle looming, a long ball out of defence caught the Bloaters’ defence out and winger Jack Charnock ran on and steered the ball past Whatmough to equalise.

The Dragons almost moved ahead after the break as a cross was cleared by Howell but the ball hit Forbes and was heading for the back of the net before Whatmough recovered to save.

The game was in the balance as the home side, roared on by the crowd, threatened to spoil the visitors’ day but the Bloaters relieved some of the pressure as a Jordan Forbes header was saved and then a superbly weighted pass by Urry almost found Sanders lurking at the far post.

The best move of the game then saw some excellent play between Davis and Hagan who drifted past two defenders and crossed for Sanders to net from close range, However the assistant referee had seen an offside and the effort was ruled out, with Sanders earning a yellow-card for his protests. However the introduction of Hagan was having an impact and he and Davis created an opening for skipper Andersen who lofted over a perfectly-weighted cross that was met by Mitch Forbes’ head to make it 2-1 with 10 minutes left.

The Dragons thought they had equalised late on when substitute Ominiabohs powered in a shot but the assistants’ flag denied the big striker.

Bloaters: Whatmough, Urry, Andersen, Costandachi, Howell, Forbes J, Sanders, Lewis, Forbes M, Holmes, Davis. Subs (used): Hagan, Palmer.