Ebbsfleet had to settle for a share of the points at Hemel Hempstead in Vanarama Conference South after conceding eight minutes from time.

Fleet were looking to bounce back from their disappointing FA Cup exit last week against Basingstoke and they came flying out of the traps on Saturday with Charlie Sheringham smashing an effort against the bar in the early stages.

Sheringham also saw a shot saved before he finally opened the scoring, heading home a Billy Bricknell cross on 27 minutes.

It was a deserved goal for Fleet who thought they should have had a penalty minutes earlier when Bricknell was pulled back in the area.

However the goal lifted the home side, who fought back in the remaining 15 minutes of the half, and had the ball in the back of the net, only for it to be disallowed, and saw a cross cleared off the line by Fleet defender Joe Howe.

The second half started slowly, Bricknell having Fleet's first chance, but fired wide from a tough angle, before Sheringham hit the woodwork for a second time, this time the ball bouncing away of the underside of the bar.

As the home side fought back, Ebbsfleet started to defend deeper and the pressure finally told when a ball over the top of the Fleet defence was converted by James Simmonds with just eight minutes left.

And it could have got worse for Fleet when the home side struck the post late on.