Goals from Lee Ndlovu and Twariq Yusuf downed a Moors side who have now lost four consecutive games without scoring.

On a frustrating and fruitless night, Moors were unfortunate not to be given a penalty with the score at 1-0 after Carl Magnay was dragged to the floor in the area.

Magnay picked up a yellow card for his reaction before seeing red in the final minute after a shirt pull on Ndlovu.

Tommy Miller opted to bring Stephen Thompson into the starting line-up after a bright cameo in the previous game against Alfreton, with the forward replacing Adriano Moke.

John Lufudu returned and replaced Ryan Hall, while Harry Flatters continued in goal with Dale Eve still recovering from a rib injury.

Moors suffered the worst possible start against a Brackley side who have only conceded five times this season, leaving Ndlovu unchallenged in the area and allowing him to nod in a deep free kick after eight minutes.

Glen Taylor almost responded on two occasions when he prodded straight at Danny Lewis, before fizzing a volleyed snapshot wide of the post.

The Saints had their opportunities in a lively first half and should have doubled their advantage, but Matt Lowe fluffed his lines from eight yards when it seemed easier to score.

Good work from Glenn Walker almost carved out another for the typically impressive Ndlovu, but he couldn’t stretch to convert a teasing ball across the area.

Moors did have the ball in the back of the net just before half time, but the linesman adjudged Joe Tait to be offside when he pulled a ball back for Taylor to convert.

A second half response was required from Moors who began the second half with an extra level of intensity.

Ten minutes after the restart Magnay was hauled back in the area following a dangerous corner and blocked shot on the line, and, despite huge appeals, the referee was unmoved.

The defender picked up a caution for his reaction which would later come back to haunt him in the games climax.

Moors were very much in the contest at 1-0, but, once Yusuf pounced to double Brackley’s lead, the game was all but tied up for the new league leaders.

After failing to clear a corner fully, Lowe’s effort was superbly cleared on the line by Magnay, only for the rebound to drop to Yusuf who converted at the second attempt.

That scrappy goal zapped any momentum Spennymoor had gathered in the second half and effectively spelled the end of the contest, with the game petering out from that point.

There was one final moment of incident, with Magnay seeing a second yellow for pulling the shirt of Ndlovu as the clock ticked past 90 minutes.