It will be another long day and night for Braintree Town’s players and staff as they head to Torquay United tonight.

The Iron’s part-time players will make the 550-mile round trip to play the Vanarama Conference Premier game against the Gulls before returning to their day jobs.

The lengthy journey has to be made in midweek as the original Saturday fixture was postponed due to Torquay’s involvement in the FA Trophy on February 7, however, assistant boss Keith Rowland feels it’s the type of experience that makes them stronger as a unit.

He said: “We have to go back to work at the start of the week (after the 1-1 draw at Forest Green Rovers on Saturday), but I’ve taken two days off work for the trip to Torquay.

“I don’t know what everyone else has done, but the league is what it is and we don’t do overnight stays.

“Things like that make us a tight-knit group, though.

“And we will go into the game with the ability of getting something out of it.

“They are a good group of players to work with.

“We are a small group and we don’t have the depth of squads like Forest Green and Gateshead to call on.

“We know that and that’s why we are a tight-knit group.

“We look after them, they put the work in for us and they do what we ask of them.”

Braintree will be looking to continue the good form that has seen them take four points from their previous two games against promotion-chasing opposition – a 1-0 win against Gateshead at home and Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Forest Green Rovers.

Thos results have taken the Iron to within four points of the 50 that boss Alan Devonshire feels will guarantee their place in the Conference top-flight for another season.