Garry Hill admitted Ebbsfleet made hard work of their Boxing Day win against Braintree.

Fleet looked comfortable at half-time after goals from Danny Kedwell (2) and Bagasan Graham had given them a 3-1 lead.

But the home side conceded a penalty two minutes into the second half and it was a nervy affair after that.

Report: Ebbsfleet United 4 Braintree Town 2

Cody McDonald's first goal for the club gave Hill's side some breathing space but things could, and should, have been a lot more comfortable against the National League's bottom side.

Hill said: "We made hard work of it. We could have scored a lot more but it’s the manner where we’ve been sloppy that I’m not happy about.

"When it gets to 3-2, it does get everyone a little bit anxious.

"All we’ve got to continue to do is do our own jobs properly. When you do that and you get results, there’s sure to be bonuses in respect of other results around you."

Fleet scored in the first minute but were quickly pegged back when goalkeeper Nathan Ashmore failed to get enough distance on his punch from a corner.

Chris Bush's clumsy challenge gave the penalty away as Ebbsfleet put themselves under needless pressure.

Hill said: "I always said it was going to be a very dangerous game.

"Even though Braintree are sitting at the bottom of the league, their performances recently have been very encouraging.

"They're fighting to stay in the division and they always become tough games.

"At Christmas time, and I've experienced it so many times, you should never take anything for granted on league position.

"We got the ideal start but we were very disappointed by the way we defended for their (first) goal. It's a cheap goal and it invited them back into the game.

"The game was very open, we found ourselves 2-1 up and the big goal of the half was from the corner when we worked it and Bagasan Graham put a great strike in the bottom corner.

"We needed that cushion but it was very sloppy at the start of the second half. We invited them back in, a lack of concentration or discipline, whatever way you look at it.

"It became a very dangerous game again and whoever got the next goal, it could have gone either way. It was like a cup tie, end to end, but we deservedly won the game."

The win, Ebbsfleet's fourth in a row at home, leaves them two places and eight points from the play-offs.

Hill said: "We’ve got to realise that under two months ago, we were sitting in 17th position.

"Players have gone out, staff have gone out and we’re still restricted on certain things

"But at any level of football, you’ve got to win your home games. If you win your home league games, you turn your ground into a fortress.

"When you look at our home form in the league, we've beaten Halifax, Barnet and now Braintree.

"I think we’re going to find ourselves in a tighter group above us and the Eastleigh game on Saturday and Braintree away (on New Year's Day become a massive six points on offer for us."