Kyle Cameron’s winner saw Bromley move onto the cusp of promotion to League One with a 2-1 comeback victory against Shrewsbury at the Copperjax Stadium.
Cameron completed Bromley’s comeback with a 49th-minute strike which deflected in off Tom Anderson to move the League Two leaders seven points clear of second-placed MK Dons and third-placed Notts County.
Bradley Ihionvien initially fired Shrewsbury in front with a sixth-minute finish from Anderson’s long ball, before Marcus Ifill equalised for Bromley from a 38th-minute corner.
Shrewsbury remain sat 18th in the table and 11 points clear of the relegation zone.
Unbeaten in their last 23 league matches at home and having seen their promotion rivals slip up on Easter Monday, Bromley began this match eying a seven-point gap at the summit but got an early scare as Josh Ruffels smashed a shot over the bar for Shrewsbury.
That unexpected early warning wasn’t heeded as just three minutes later, Anderson intercepted a throw-in and played a direct long ball up the pitch which found Ihionvien to rifle in under Grant Smith’s legs to stun the home crowd and put Shrewsbury in front.
Shrewsbury however almost handed Bromley an 11th-minute equaliser from a corner-kick which was nearly nodded into their own net by one of their own players, only for Matthew Cox to save his defence’s blushes.
Omar Sowunmi and Nicke Kabamba soon saw headers blocked as Bromley began to settle but Iwan Morgan on a quick 16th-minute attack forced a save from Smith to stop Shrewsbury doubling their lead.
Moments later, Marquis flicked a knockdown header of a throw-in into the net to double Shrewsbury’s lead but he was swiftly declared offside with the goal disallowed much to his chagrin.
Bromley soon got on top of their visitors as Corey Whitely saw a 24th-minute header blocked, before Ashley Charles frustratingly rifled a shot wide as the Ravens chased an equaliser before half time.
Their pressure paid off as Shrewsbury’s Sam Stubbs conceded a 38th-minute corner which Cameron knocked down with a header, which fell for Will Hondermarck to flick forward for Ifill to smash into the right corner on the half-turn to restore parity.
Bromley continued to build their momentum until half-time as Sowunmi headed over the bar in the third minute of injury time, after Ismeal Kabia intercepted Pinnock only to flick the ball behind his own goal.
Andy Woodman’s Ravens momentum continued in the opening minutes of the second half and eventually paid off in the 49th minute, as a corner was half cleared but fell for Cameron whose shot deflected in off Anderson.
Shrewsbury were lucky to not fall further behind just shy of the hour mark after Pinnock broke forward but Kabia and Stubbs tripped over each other as they intercepted the winger, who regathered the ball and teed up Ifill to poke in his cutback pass.
Referee, Abigail Byrne however disallowed Ifill’s second goal because she incorrectly adjudged Pinnock to had brought down both Kabia and Stubbs and blown the whistle, just moments before Ifill’s effort crossed the line.
Damola Ajayi meanwhile rifled a 70th-minute shot wide of the top left corner as Bromley continued to push for a third goal, whilst Marquis headed wide for Shrewsbury as the Shrews tried to force an equaliser.
Smith however saved Isaac England’s 88th-minute shot as Bromley clung on for victory which left them on the cusp of promotion which could be confirmed on Saturday 11 April if they beat MK Dons and either Swindon failed to win at Colchester or Notts County lose at Cambridge.
The victory also meant that Bromley had achieved their highest-ever points tally in a single league campaign of 83 points, bettering the 82 points that they scored in 1977-78 and 79-80 seasons, whilst their unbeaten home form extended to 24 matches stretching back to April 2025.
“massive three points”
Pinnock post-match spoke to UK broadcaster, Sky Sports in which he spoke of the psychological benefit of having watched Bromley’s promotion rivals slip up yesterday (6 April), which heightened the significance of their win to build a nice gap ahead of their final four matches against top-half opposition.
“It was a massive three points. the advantage of playing today, we saw what happened yesterday and it went for us so it was important we got the three points to get the gap as big as we can.
“My game is to get it out wide and get it in the box and we’ve done it all season – we put it in there and ask questions.”
Woodman Feels Bromley’s home is “a fortress”
Now unbeaten in 24 matches and on the cusp of promotion on 83 points, Woodman told Sky Sports post-match that he is proud that his team has made the Copperjax Stadium “a fortress” over the last 12 months following a huge result against Shrewsbury.
“We’re delighted to get the three points, that’s all it’s about at this stage. The performance can sometimes be a little nervous but the three points is massive for us tonight.
“We’ve really made this a fortress and the guys have taken real pride in that. To concede and then come back shows the character or the lads and I’m really proud of them.”
Woodman added that the Ravens have promotion in their own hands as he continued: “We’ve been here long enough to know it’s not over I hurl it’s over but with the results at the weekend, we knew we had to win tonight. We’ve got a huge four games coming up but we’ve really put ourselves in the driving seat.
“We haven’t feared anybody. These other clubs are big clubs compared to us, way bigger budgets, more experience in every department. So we’ve really relished these games, we haven’t shied away from anyone, we’ve given everything in every game and now we can go into these games with belief and confidence that we might become champions.”
What’s Next?
Bromley turn their focus towards a massive trip to MK Dons at Stadium MK on Saturday 11 April at 12:30pm BST.
Shrewsbury host Oldham on the above date in a 3pm kick-off at New Meadow.
Teams
Bromley: Grant Smith, Marcus Ifill, Omar Sowunmi, Kyle Cameron, Idris Odutayo, Corey Whitely, Will Hondermarck, Ashley Charles (Arthurs 82′), Mitch Pinnock (Ilunga 91′), Damola Ajayi (Krauhaus 82′), Nicke Kabamba
Substitutes: Jude Arthurs, Marcus Dinanga, George Evans, Brooklyn Ilunga, Carl Jenkinson, Sam Long, Zech Medley
Shrewsbury: Matthew Cox, Sam Stubbs, Tom Anderson, Josh Ruffels, Ismeal Kabia, Nick Freeman (Perry 56′), Temple Ojinnaka (Clucas 64′), Kevin Berkoe (England 79′), Iwan Morgan, Bradley Ihionvien (Lloyd 63′), John Marquis (Scully 79′)
Substitutes: Will Brook, Sam Clucas, Isaac England, Lee Issac, George Lloyd, Taylor Perry, Anthony Scully
Referee – Abigail Byrne
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