By Olly Deed at Underhill - Many Thanks to Olly Deed for writing this match report
Barnet 1 - 2 Carlisle United
Holmes (OG) Bridges, Hackeny
Barnet suffered their second home defeat in a row at the hands of Carlisle in an entertaining encounter. Defensive mistakes cost the Bees dearly in a game that they really should have won in the first half.
Barnet started very brightly in the first half and had a string of chances; Ismail Yakubu, Ben Strevens and Jason Norville had the most notable chances but each of them failed to capitalise.
The Bees first chance came in the third minute, when Ismail Yakubu headed wide from an impressive free-kick from, Ben Strevens. Jason Norville had the next chance, but shot wide from distance after good link up play with Guiliano Grazioli, who was captain in place of Ian Hendon who was left on the bench by Paul Fairclough.
In the twenty seventh minute Barnet had their best chance of the half as Grazioli and Norville linked up again to create a chance for Ben Strevens who shot over the bar, when he really should have done better.
Carlisle then had their first chance of the game as Derek Holmes hit the post for the Cumbrians after Peter Murphy sent in a long free-kick. Holmes got the better of Anthony Charles, but was very unlucky to hit the post. This was Carlisles only real chance in the first half. Yakubu and Charles managed to subdue League Twos top scorer Karl Hawley and former Newcastle and Leeds man Michael Bridges in the first forty five minutes.
Barnet had another two chances before the break. Carlisle keeper Kieren Westwood produced a super save to deny Ben Strevens after he struck a sublime free-kick. From the resulting corner Dean Sinclair headed just wide when the goal was at his mercy.
Barnet failed to capitalise on a good first half performance which would come back to haunt them as Carlisle went on to win the game.
Carlisle certainly came out better in the second half. Karl Hawley was substituted due to injury, which must have been to the relief of the Barnet fans. Yet, it didnt seem to effect the League 2 leaders too much as Michael Bridges almost put them ahead, but his effort sailed over the bar, and into the Barnet fans behind the goal.
Barnet seemed to wake up after this and eventually went in to the lead in the fifty third minute. Nicky Bailey floated a hopeful free-kick into the area which proved a success as Carlisle forward Derek Holmes headed into his own net, having been put under pressure by Anthony Charles.
Barnets lead was short lived though as not more than twenty seconds later Michael Bridges latched on to a long ball from Holmes to slot home coolly past debutant goalkeeper Matt Reed to send the Carlisle following of just under a thousand fans, mental. Bridges started to show glimpses of his old self, and showed what an asset he is to Carlisle.
From then on it was mainly Carlisle who pushed on to score a winning goal. They got that goal on the seventy fourth minute, as Simon Hackney, who had just seen an effort go wide , was more accurate as he powered his shot past Matt Reed. Carlisle then hit the post through Aranalde from a free-kick. Dean Sinclair almost grabbed a point for the Bees but his twenty yard shot was well saved by Westwood in the Carlisle Goal.
The high-flying Cumbrians continued their good run and look set for promotion, whereas the Bees are now staring down the barrel at relegation back to the Conference. The Bees travel to Leyton Orient on Tuesday night desperately needing three points at Brisbane Road.
By Iain Dalziel at The Memorial Ground
Bristol Rovers 2 -1 Barnet
Walker (2) Strevens
Sat 26 Nov, Coca-Cola League 2, 3pm
Barnets three game unbeaten run came to an end at Bristol Rovers, as they paid the price for a dire first half display, going down 2-1 on a cold and wet afternoon at The Memorial Ground.
Barnet made just one change from the side that defeated Torquay 1-0 last weekend. Anthony Charles replaced Damien Batt in the left back role. New boy Paolo Vernazza was named among the subs, however, he was to remain unused.
This was expected to be a tight game, the Bees going into it three places above Bristol Rovers in the League 2 table. Though with a recently installed new management team at Rovers and a few players returning from injuries this was going to be a tough test for Barnet, as they were soon to find out.
Right from the off Rovers were on top. Barnet looked nervous and shaky when in possession and an error by Yakubu when he gave the ball away just outside the area led to Richard Walker being put through to the fire The Pirates into an early lead.
Things got no better for Barnet in the first quarter of the game, Bristol were having no problem and were fully in control. The Bees looked very poor and when they had the ball they seemed clueless as to what to do with it. Therefore it came as little surprise when Walker doubled his and Rovers account for the afternoon, a little after mid-way through the first period.
Towards the end of the first half Barnet looked slightly better, Bailey and Sinclair both showing a bit of initiative and taking shots from the edge of the Rovers area, but Barnet caused little to seriously concern their hosts in the first half. When half time came Barnet could have no complaints about being 2-0 down, in truth it couldve been more.
Barnet didnt enjoy the better of the spoils in the early exchanges of the second half, though after the first ten minutes of the second forty five the Bees settled down somewhat and became more involved in the game. However, progress was halted a number of times due to some very confusing decisions by the linesman. For a team hardly at the best, poor officiating was only to hinder the Bees chances even further.
Going into the final twenty five, Barnet were looking the better of the two sides, yet couldnt force their way back into it and time was not on their side. However, on sixty eight minutes Barnet finally snatched a goal to put themselves back in the game. A well taken corner, one of many on the afternoon, by Soares was met well by the head of Ben Strevens. His header from just inside the six yard box made it game on and the Bees were now back with a chance of maintaining the unbeaten run.
After Strevens goal, Barnet dominated. In the final twenty minutes Grazioli and Sinclair both hit the post, Bristol keeper Scott Shearer made some vital punches and catches from various crosses and corners, the Bees could do everything but score. Barnet threw everything forward. A late drive by skipper Ian Hendon nearly went into the top corner, but unusually for an effort from the Barnet captain, it looked the power to beat Shearer. The frustration was growing, a bad tackle by Grazioli earned him a booking, King also went in the book, though seemingly quite harshly. Fairclough threw on Norville for Soares as Barnet really pushed on for that all important second goal, but it wasnt to be. After three minutes of injury time the referee called time on the game and Rovers finished 2-1 winners.
At the end of the day Barnet can only blame themselves. Their performance in the closing twenty minutes was fantastic and they were very unlucky to not force a point considering the numerous efforts they had. However, the first half display was so poor that Barnet really made life difficult and eventually too hard for themselves. Had Faircloughs side played as they did in the final twenty throughout then it would be hard to imagine anything but a Barnet win.
So it is now three and a half months without an away win, a run which will stretch to four months at least with the next away trip not being for another three weeks when Barnet trek North to Macclesfield Town. First though, there are two important home games against Bury and Northampton. The Bees must go into these games knowing that theyre there for the taking, but the performance level must resemble that of the closing, rather than opening stages, of this afternoons match. Though reasonably entertaining, a frustrating afternoon for Barnet who remain 16th in the League 2 table.
Barnet: Flitney (6), Hendon (7), Yakubu (7), King (6), Charles (5), Strevens (7), Sinclair (6), Bailey (6), Soares (6) (Norville (7) ), Hatch (6), Grazioli (6)
Unused Subs: Tynan, Batt, Vernazza, Lee
Bees Goal: Ben Strevens (68)
Iain Dalziels Man Of The Match: Ismail Yakubu, despite being at fault for the first goal he otherwise had a reasonably solid afternoon. No Barnet player did particularly well in the first half, but in the second Yakubu looked composed and assured going forward and much more solid at the back, keeping ex-Bee Junior Agogo very quiet.
Attendance: 5096 ( 246 Barnet)
By Iain Dalziel at Old Trafford
Manchester United 4 -1 Barnet
Miller, Richardson, Rossi, Ebanks-Blake Sinclair
Wednesday 26th October, Old Trafford, Carling Cup 3rd Round
Despite the score line suggesting otherwise, Barnet did themselves proud, going down 4-1 at Old Trafford, but playing with ten men for more than eighty eight minutes.
The Bees played with full commitment and effort throughout the game and in the second half matched and at times bettered their Man United counterparts, in this monumental game in Barnet FCs history. To mark the occasion the Bees wore a one off violet and black shirt, in the same style as the original and first Barnet FC team wore when they were formed in 1888.
Sadly, any chance of Barnet producing a sensational shock win was all but dashed just ninety seconds in. A long ball from United right back Phil Bardsley was too long for young Ebanks-Blake to latch onto and headed toward Ross Flitney in the Barnet goal. Yet the Bees goalkeepers enthusiasm and eagerness got the better of him and he handled the ball just outside his eighteen yard box, the ex-Fulham man rushing out even though under no pressure. Immediately the whistle blew for a free kick to Manchester United and the referee called Flitney over. Though the law of the game says for it to be a straight red card a goal scoring opportunity has to be denied, despite the nearest United attacker being ten yards away from Flitney the referee didnt hesitate and to the shock of the entire ground, especially the away fans, he produced a red card. After some protest the young shot stopper walked the length of the pitch and down the tunnel, clearly distraught. Fairclough came onto the pitch to comfort him and shortly after had another upset player to comfort. With Flitney dismissed Scott Tynan had to replace him in goal, meaning a player was going to have to be sacrificed. The unlucky man was Louie Soares, clearly he too was most upset at having his big chance snatched away from him, by a rather poor bit of refereeing. A little initiative from Mr. Beeb, the referee, wouldve kept the game more open and also not ruined a special day for two young footballers.
Not only had Ross Flitney been dismissed, but Manchester United had also, of course, been awarded a free kick. In a very dangerous position up stepped Liam Miller to curl in the sort of free kick that David Beckham was known for at Old Trafford. Millers effort bent into the top corner, though Tynan got a hand there was little he could do, thus meaning his first real touch of the net was getting the ball out of his goal. Barnet behind in the opening stages, it looked as if it was going to be a truly one-sided affair.
After the goal, Barnet realising they were going to have to cope with ten men for the remainder of the game, did try and get involved and make United work for it. Only a few minutes after going behind the Bees had the ball in Tim Howards net. However, unfortunately for the excitable Barnet following, the dream of the equaliser was short lived, as Graziolis close range effort was ruled offside. Bar this effort Tim Howard barely touched the ball for the rest of the first half.
Manchester United looked dangerous every time they went forward, yet it was in a somewhat lucky manner they doubled their lead. A bad challenge by Gross led to a free kick being giving on the right side of the area. Kieran Richardson looked to whip it in for a United player to latch onto, but no one did. However, this didnt matter as no player from either side went for the ball and it ended up going off the inside of the post and into the bottom corner, much to the embarrassment of Tynan and his defence. This was a poor goal to concede from Barnet, against any opposition, but in these circumstances this effort from the young England international, Richardson, all but ended any chance of Barnet making a comeback.
To be fair to Barnet after going 2-0 down they did well to prevent an expected goal rush, holding out for 2-0 at half time. Though Man United had chances. Rossi wasted a great opportunity, firing over from twelve yards when the ball was given to him on a plate. From a corner Adam Gross also helped prevent another goal, heading off the line. United also had a very good shout for a penalty turned down by the referee, the referee possibly trying to even things up in terms of big decisions?
Nonetheless, despite their dominance in general United led just 2-0 at half time, the red card to Ross Flitney affecting the Bees as was to be expected, but at 2-0 they had kept the score respectable so far.
Sir Alex Fergusons young side began the second half firmly in control. Barnet were struggling to contain them in the early stages of the second period and it came as no surprise when exciting Italian teenager Rossi finished off a classy move with a good finish, stabbing into the bottom corner, making it 3-0.
Yet once they went 3-0 down, Barnet came out of their shell a bit and tried to attack United more. Now with nothing to lose whatsoever. On many occasions in the evening Barnets passing and maintaining of possession in the middle of the park had been impressive, but seemed to lack purpose slightly. However, with the game now way beyond Barnets reach they seemed more willing to try and crack United.
Dwane Lee went very close from a free kick, his sweetly struck effort going just over the bar and an ambitious striker by Bailey from the edge of the area also went high and over. However, Barnet had started to play really well and were making United work hard when they had the ball. Then, with sixteen minutes to go, Barnet got reward for their brave efforts.
Young Gerald Pique, a highly rated Spanish centre back, miss-controlled the ball on the edge of the area. Barnets Dean Sinclair subsequently pounced on his error and burst into the area. Coolly the young Bees midfielder took the ball around the America goalkeeper, Tim Howard and fired home a consolation goal for Barnet. But try telling the noisy away contingent that. In the East Stand Upper Tier, where the Bees support was based, there was mayhem. Though Barnet had effectively lost the game already, Sinclairs effort meant a great deal to the travelling band of supporters, seeing their team scoring at Old Trafford, when down to ten men was an achievement in itself for Barnet.
After Sinclairs goal, Barnet still seemed keen to have a go at Man United, Hatch replaced Grazioli and certainly did his best at making things difficult for England international Wes Brown in the United defence. Were Hatch not pulled up for a very dubious foul on Brown he many have ended up one on one with a chance of making it 3-2.
Harshly, for all Barnets tremendous efforts and play for much of the second half, United got a fourth goal late on. Barnet had pushed up maybe a little too far and a ball over the top allowed Sylvan Ebanks-Blake to grab a goal in his first senior start for Fergusons side, him and Rossi showed a great deal of potential as a future United front two, throughout the night.
After Ebanks-Blakes goal and a few minutes of stoppage time, the referee brought this historic occasion for Barnet to an end.
Though the Bees had ended up conceding for goals, Paul Fairclough and his players can come out of this encounter with a great deal of pride. In the second half Barnet were nothing short of superb, particularly seeing as they had a player less than their opponents. While tonight was a chance for Uniteds youngsters to show Sir Alex their talents, Barnets team of mainly young players did themselves no harm, some Bees players in particular may well have put themselves in the shop window on that performance. Were Ross Flitney not sent off it couldve been a different game, though in fairness, United were the better team overall, but the 4-1 score line possibly flattered Fergusons side a bit.
At the end the Bees fans and players clapped and cheered each other off, as although the cup dream was over, both had done the club proud on the night. Though 4-1 Manchester United was not the ideal score for the Bees, the manner of their defeat and also level of their performance, especially in the games final third means Barnet can still hold their heads high and not look back on this game in a negative way.
Maybe not the cup shock many were hoping for, but a memorable night for everyone connected with Barnet Football Club nonetheless, even if it was slightly spoilt early on by a harsh decision, this the opinion of both Fairclough and Ferguson.
Barnet now must get back to the business of League 2 and put an end to their poor run in the League, by getting three points at home to Rushden & Diamonds on Saturday.
Manchester United: Howard, Bardsley, Pique, Brown, Eckersley, Martin (Gibson), Miller, Jones, Richardson, Rossi, Ebanks-Blake
Unused Subs: Steele, Smith, Silvestre, Park
United Goals: Miller (3), Richardson (20), Rossi (51), Ebanks-Blake (89)
Iain Dalziels United Man Of The Match: Kieran Richardson, showed his pedigree. He does seem to be improving rapidly and a regular England berth in the not too distant future is more than possible. Italian youngster Rossi was also impressive and no doubt has a big future.
Barnet: Flitney*, Hendon (7), King (8), Yakubu (7), Gross (7), Soares* (Tynan (7), Strevens (7), Bailey (9), Sinclair (8), Lee (7) (Batt (6), Grazioli (6)
*=Flitney, sent off, after ninety seconds, Soares was then subbed, hence no rating for either.
Unused Subs: Charles, Graham
Bees Goal: Dean Sinclair (74)
Iain Dalziels Barnet Man Of The Match: Nicky Bailey, almost unfortunate he played this well! Bailey really was quite outstanding and gave 110% all night. If he carries on playing like that, I fear he will be playing higher up the leagues sooner rather than later. The whole midfield did pretty well, Sinclair took his goal very well, combined with a solid performance also Ben Strevens and Dwane Lee showed some nice touches and passed the ball around well. Another player who was a contender for man of the match has to be Simon King, made some very good tackles, like Bailey I too think hell be playing at a higher level before long. However, Bailey seemed to be everywhere and therefore is my man of the match.
Attendance: 43,637 (Approx 5,000 Barnet)
Iain Dalziels Final Comment: Proud.
By Iain Dalziel at Underhill
Barnet 1-1 Rochdale
Saturday 24th September 2005, League Two, Underhill (Match Summary)
Another mediocre, at best, home display saw the Bees draw 1-1 at home to Rochdale.
The Bees made one change from the Plymouth game, Flitney coming back in goal with Tynan on the bench. Liam Hatch returned for Barnet on the subs bench and replaced Soares in the second half. Hatch put in a good performance, really causing 'Dale problems when he came on.
Grant Holt headed Rochdale into a lead in the first half, poor marking on a corner allowed the big man to connect well to head past Flitney.
Barnet grabbed their goal in the 87th minute. Liam Hatch causing problems in the box, led to an aerial scramble. Gilks came out to try and punch the danger away, but failed and ended up on the floor, allowing Grazioli to head home an equaliser into an unguarded net to salvage a point for Fairclough's side.
Not the best performance, but at least we got a point. Of course the highlight of the day, the Carling Cup 3rd Round Draw: (this is how it went on sky sports..)"Manchester United, will play....number 3. And there will be a lot of happy people in....Barnet!" Amazing stuff, I don't think that will sink in for a few weeks, Man United away, marvellous!!!
Barnet: Flitney (7), Hendon (7), King (6), Charles (6), Batt (5), Soares (6) (Hatch) (7), Lee (6), Sinclair (6), Strevens (6) (Graham) (6), Grazioli (7)
Unused Subs: Tynan, Bowditch, Gross
Bees Goal: Grazioli (87)
Iain Dalziels Barnet Man Of The Match: Giuliano Grazioli, no one really stood out, but I thought Grazioli worked very hard and did well against a big centre back. Hes clearly been working on his pace, thats definitely improving, as is his control, his first touch looks very good. That superb winner against Plymouth may really have given him the confidence to push on and have yet another fantastic season.
Rochdale: Gilks, Clarke, Griffiths, Gallimore, Jaszczun, Jones, Brisco (Brown), Warner, Sturrock, Holt, Lambert (Tait)
Unused Subs: Woodhall, Boardman, McArdle
Dale Goal: Holt (35)
Iain Dalziels Rochdale Man Of The Match: Grant Holt, good header for his goal, worked hard up front and caused the Barnet defence difficulties.
Attendance: 2238
By Iain Dalziel at Underhill
Barnet 2-1 Plymouth Argyle
Tuesday 20th September 2005, Carling Cup 2nd Round, Underhill
A brilliant Barnet side, rejuvenated playing the 4-4-2 formation saw off Championship side Plymouth Argyle, 2-1, on a memorable night at Underhill.
Paul Fairclough made a few changes from the side that lost at Wycombe last Saturday. Riche Graham was rested (said Fairclough), Ben Bowditch and Ross Flitney also were not in the starting eleven, but both made the subs bench. The three replacements were Tynan re-instated in goal, Soares given a chance on the right wing and Ben Strevens brought in, to play up front.
Plymouth rested a few players, including ex-West Ham and Fulham defender Rufus Brevett, yet former Inter Milan defender Taribo West played along with a few other reasonably well known players such as former Bolton man Anthony Barness and Northern Ireland left back Tony Capaldi.
The game started at a fast tempo, Barnet stringing together some good early passes, clearly not afraid to have a go at Plymouth. The Bees looked more attack minded than in recent weeks, the 4-4-2 working to good effect early on.
After a very good start from Faircloughs side the Bees opened the scoring twelve minutes in, in cracking fashion. During a spell of pressure from the Bees they won a corner, which was headed away, to the edge of the area. Yet unfortunately for Argyle Simon King was there on the edge of the area to strike the sweetest of volleys into the roof of the net from twenty yards. A rather poor, but noisy nonetheless, Underhill went wild. The goal reminiscent of his winning goal away to Aldershot last season, a terrific strike.
The goal clearly rattled Plymouth into responding and straight from the kick off they looked better than they had done so far. However, Barnet too remained to look dangerous, a Simon King header going just over the bar.
However, despite looking pretty strong still, it wasnt too long before the Championship side were on level terms. However, there was little Scott Tynan couldve done to prevent the goal.
Plymouth were awarded a free kick about thirty yards from the Bees goal, which was delayed whilst Nicky Bailey was receiving treatment, having injured himself making the tackle which gave away the free kick. Yet when the kick was taken it was unstoppable. Buzsaky struck a wonderful curling, yet superbly powerful effort into Scott Tynans top right hand corner. The second excellent goal of the game.
From here on the remaining twenty five minutes of the first half were very evenly balanced. Both sides had a few chances, Plymouth forcing a great one handed save from Tynan at one stage. Argyle looked strong on the break, but luckily for Barnet both Simon King and Anthony Charles were in fine form at the back. The Bees however almost took the lead again in what would have been a bizarre yet quite amazing way. What looked to be a cross from the right by Bailey was a little over hit and swerved towards goal. Beating everyone, including McCormick in goal, it hit the upright and came down and the danger was cleared. Had it gone in it would have been almost identical to the famous Ronaldinho goal in the 2002 World Cup.
The half time whistle blew with the score at 1-1, yet it was fair to say the Bees had matched, if not bettered their higher league opponents in the first forty five.
If Barnets start to the first half was something good, the second half start was simply explosive!
Within less than a minute of the re-start Barnet had got back in front, once again in an impressive way. A lobbed ball forward was chased onto by Grazioli, something hes been used to doing in the 4-5-1 system. It looked as if the practice had paid off as he got behind West, chased onto the ball and then exquisitely chipped it over the head of the helpless McCormick. Once again Underhill erupted, a really cool finish in a high pressure situation.
This goal gave the Bees confidence and rather than resting on their laurels, they decided to continue to attack Plymouth, who were finding it really tough to cope against a spirited Bees side. Bailey was causing many problems down the left wing, either cutting into the box or squaring it to the likes of Sinclair. Soares on the right was also proving a handful for Plymouth and veteran former superstar Taribo West was having a torrid time up against Strevens and Grazioli.
Really Barnet should have put the game beyond Plymouths reach. Had Grazioli not thought he was offside when in one on one, his lobbed efforts likely destination wouldve been the net, rather than where it ended up going, way off target.
Plymouth were struggling to create chances, but with fifteen minutes to go they had to be more attack minded if they were going to avoid the embarrassment of being on the wrong end of a cup upset. However, they didnt seem to be able to find a way to break down a stubborn Bees back line. Buzsaky, Plymouths most creative player on the night and scorer of the first goal tried to repeat the long range spectacular goal trick, this time in open play. Running with the ball in the Bees half he decided to let fly with a tremendously powerful shot. Luckily for Barnet, and in particular Tynan, the ball cannoned down off the under side of the bar, onto the goal line and bounced back out into play. A let off for the Bees, but it would not have been a deserved equaliser.
In the final ten minutes Barnet still pressed forward, deciding the best way to hold onto their lead would be to keep attacking. Despite a few worrying moments when Plymouth went forward, it did the trick. Bowditch replaced Soares and late on, to waste time more than anything, the goal scorer Grazioli was subbed for Jason Norville. Argyle made changes too, but it was to no avail. They couldnt break down the Bees, who even in the three minutes stoppage time continued to bomb forward.
After what seemed a very long three minutes stoppage time the referee, who had a good game, blew the whistle for full time, sending Underhill mad for the third time! Though Plymouth are struggling in the league, the fact there is a forty three place gap between the sides really didnt show, if anything Barnet looked the higher league team.
A brilliant performance by the Bees who looked really good back in 4-4-2. Lets hope they continue to play like that on Saturday and get a good draw in the next round. A fantastic night at Underhill.
Barnet: Tynan (8), Hendon (7), King (9), Charles (8), Batt (7), Soares (7) (Bowditch) (6), Lee (7), Sinclair (8), Bailey (9), Strevens (9), Grazioli (8) (Norville) (6) (player ratings in brackets)
Unused Subs: Flitney, Gross, Roache
Bees Goals: King (12) Grazioli (46)
Iain Dalziels Barnet Man Of The Match: Ben Strevens, Bailey and King also in contention but Im giving it to Benny. Having been out of the team recently he came in last night and played in a position he hasnt played in for so long and was quite simply superb, I was delighted to see him playing like that, long may it continue. Whole team were good though, not one bad performance.
Plymouth Argyle: McCormick, Barness, West, Doumbe, Capaldi, Gudjonsson, Lasley (Summerfield), Buzsaky, Derbyshire, Chadwick, Taylor (Djordic)
Unused Subs: Larrieu, Mendes, Martin
Argyle Goal: Buzsaky (19)
Iain Dalziels Plymouth Man Of The Match: Akos Buzsaky, the guy had a hell of a shot on him! To be honest no one was really eye-catching for Plymouth, but he was a danger in their midfield, scored a belter and almost nicked an equaliser with a late long range strike.
Attendance: 1941
By Iain Dalziel at Underhill
Barnet 2-3 Leyton Orient
Grazioli (2) Ibrehe, Alexander (2)
Saturday 10th September 2005, Underhill, Coca-Cola League Two
D espite getting off to a flying start at Underhill, Barnet suffered their third defeat in four games at home to East Londoners, Leyton Orient.
Going into the game Barnet were without a number of key players. Clist, Hatch, Yakubu and Gross were all ruled out with injury.
Both sides went into the game on the back of some poor results. Orient had topped the table after three games, before Barnet took the first place off them in the fourth game. However, both sides have slipped down the table in recent weeks and were looking to make a mends and climb back into or around the play-off places.
However, when the game began it looked as though it could be a comfortable afternoon for Barnet. From the kick off Bailey played the ball wide to Sinclair, who took it down the right hand side. Looking up he whipped a low cross into the box which Grazioli connected with and consequently put the ball past Garner and into the net to give Barnet a 1-0 lead, just fourteen seconds in. This was Graziolis first home goal of the season and it was later revealed that it was also the quickest ever goal scored by a Barnet player at Underhill.
The quick fire goal obviously gave the home side a boost, though it didnt deter Orient, who were willing to take the game to the Bees. Jabo Ibrehe, returning from a long-term injury looked a threat every time the Os went forward in the opening stages, though not giving Bees keeper Flitney anything more than a few comfortable saves.
The way the game was going either team couldve got the next goal, though clear-cut chances were few and far between. Louie Soares almost grabbed a goal on his home debut however, when he cut in from the right hand side and unleashed a shot from the edge of the area. However, it took a deflection and went out for a corner. Shortly after the Bees again almost grabbed a second goal, a low cross by Hendon, similar to the one from Sinclair that had provided the opening goal, was aimed at Grazioli. Yet the Bees number nine couldnt get on the end of it. Had Grazioli met it, it appeared he wouldve had a carbon copy of his first goal.
In spite of the Bees efforts to double their lead, the next goal came at the end. Jabo Ibrehe marking his return to action with a goal to give Orient a thirty ninth minute equaliser. A fantastic cross from Miller was headed goal ward by Gary Alexander, yet this went straight at Anthony Charles. But unluckily for the Bees defender it deflected off him and straight into the path of Ibrehe, who clinically stabbed the ball home from close range, 1-1.
The Os equaliser was the final piece of real action in the first half. At times there was much about Barnets performance to be encouraged by, but the late first half goal may have proved to be a key moment for Leyton Orients approach to the game.
When Orient came out for the second half, they began to dominate play, having most of the possession. Barnet were doing themselves no favours however, allowing Orient far too much time on the ball.
After a poor first ten minutes from Faircloughs side the Bees made a switch, Soares coming off on fifty six minutes, being replaced by Lee Roache, meaning a formation change from 4-5-1 to 4-4-2.
Yet this clearly did not have the desired effect, as Leyton Orient continued to be the dominant side. Barnet looked dangerous every now and then on the break, but the ball never made its way into the Orient penalty area, with the Os defence playing very solidly.
On seventy four minutes Leyton Orients pressure paid off. Flitney had been the hero for the Bees on a number of occasions already, but he couldnt stop Alexanders effort which put the Os in front. Jabo Ibrehe turned Anthony Charles superbly, just inside the Barnet half and then played a superb through ball which Alexander latched onto. One on one with Flitney the Os number nine made no mistake, slotting the ball to Flitneys left and making it 2-1 to Orient.
2-1 down with sixteen minutes left, Barnet obviously had to respond, but seemed unable to find that creative spark which they showed earlier this season.
With a minute to go of normal time and Barnet failing to really create any problems, Orient killed the game off, their third of the afternoon very similar to the way the second was scored. This time it was Miller with the pass forward but once again it was Gary Alexander who ran onto it, kept his composure, and although Ross Flitney got a hand to it, it still beat the former Fulham man in the Bees goal to seal the points for Orient and send their large travelling support into raptures.
Following the third goal much of Underhill emptied and those who chose to leave early, missed one final goal. Grazioli managed to poke him his second of the afternoon in controversial fashion. Everyone, including Grazioli himself it appeared, thought he was offside, but the linesmans flag stayed down and the goal gave a little more credibility to the score line, though it flattered Barnet.
The final whistle went and understandably led to more celebrations from the Os following, though for the Barnet fans still in the ground this defeat will leave worry in the minds of many. The second half display was dire. At the back Barnet looked un-organised, Charles getting exposed on several occasions and captain Ian Hendon also had a below par game.
The formation cannot be blamed as the reason for the poor display, as at 1-1 it was changed to 4-4-2, seemingly the number one choice of the Barnet supporters and clearly it didnt work either. On the whole, in the second half anyway, Barnet were poor, but Orient played very well and must take credit for the way they totally dominated.
The game will give Fairclough much to think about, as the Bees have now dropped to 13th in the table, but it is still very early days and this reporter has no doubt that Fairclough can turn it around and get the team back on track. A tough trip to Wycombe awaits for Barnet next week, the Bees will certainly have to be at their best to get a result at the Causeway Stadium next Saturday.
Barnet: Flitney (7), Hendon (5), Charles (4), King (5), Batt (7), Soares (6) (Roache(5), Bailey (6), Lee (6), Sinclair (6), Graham (5), Grazioli (7)
(player ratings in brackets)
Unused Subs: Tynan, Bowditch, Strevens, Norville
Bees Goals: Grazioli (1,91)
Iain Dalziels Barnet Man Of The Match: Ross Flitney, there were not many candidates for the man of the match award, but Flitney did have a good game in goal and could not really be blamed for any of the Orient goals. Damien Batt also worked hard and his tackling throughout the game was quite good too.
Attendance: 3722
Leyton Orient: Garner, Lockwood, Mackie, Miller, McMahon, Carlisle, Easton, Simpson, Zakuani, Alexander, Ibrehe (Echanomi)
Unused Subs: Morris, Tudor, Keith, Barnard
Orient Goals: Ibrehe (39) Alexander (74,89)
Iain Dalziels Leyton Orient Man Of The Match: Gary Alexander, took his two goals well and generally caused the Bees defence a lot of hassle.
By Iain Dalziel at the Sixfields Stadium
Northampton Town 1 -2 Barnet
Dudfield Sinclair & Bailey
Tuesday 9th August 2005, Sixfields, Coca-Cola Football League Two
Barnet made it a two game unbeaten start, courtesy of a fantastic, last gasp 2-1 win at League 2 title favourites, Northampton Town.
The Bees went into the game as the under dogs, despite the fact that Northampton were without the two main strikers. One being Northern Ireland international Andy Kirk, a £100,000 signing from Boston United last year and the other absentee, Scott McGleish, a former fans favourite at Barnet. Both players missed out due to injury, yet with well respected forwards Sabin and Dudfield replacing them it showed the quality which Northampton Town posses.
The Barnet side for the night was exactly the same as it had been the previous Saturday for Bristol Rovers visit to Underhill. A 4-5-1 formation, the squad right down to the five subs was the exact same.
On a pleasant summers evening at the Sixfields, the game began at a frantic pace. Both teams looked keen to make their mark early on and in the opening couple of minutes each side looked willing to play good, attacking football.
The first chance of the night fell to Northamptons Pedj Bojic. The player whod hit the Cobblers goal at Lincoln on Saturday got given a close range opportunity in the area after receiving the ball from a long throw. However, Yakubu managed to get in the way of his effort and Northampton won a corner. After a fairly even first five minutes Northampton began to settle down and look dangerous going forward. Unsurprisingly it was the Cobblers who had the first clear cut chance of the match, when Lawrie Dudfield was put through one on one with Tynan in the ninth minute.
The move had all come from Jason Crowe dispossessing Ben Strevens, deep in the Northampton half. From this they had strung together a few quick passes, the final one being from Low, feeding the ball into Dudfield. However, despite keeping a seemingly cool head the striker, in his second spell at Northampton, fired just wide. An early let off for the Bees. Yet this was just a warning of what was to come. Veteran midfielder Ian Taylor forced a tremendous save out f Scott Tynan with a close-range header from a corner. Despite the headed effort being parried by Tynan the ball fell to the dangerous looking Sabin, however his shot was well blocked by Dwane Lee, the ball going round the post for another corner.
On twenty seven minutes, under great pressure already, Barnet were given another problem. Yakubu sustained a groin injury when involved in a tussle on a corner and played no further part after hobbling off. This meant a debut for Adam Gross, the recent signing from Charlton. Gross slotted in at left back, with Anthony Charles moving across to play alongside King in the centre.
Yet just moments after moving into his preferred position in the centre of defence, Charles gave away a costly free-kick. In a race for the ball with Eric Sabin, Charles clearly barged the Cobblers striker out of the way, just on the edge of the area, on the left side of the penalty area. From the resulting free kick Dudfield met an inch perfect ball by Hunt to head home his first goal since his return to the club this summer, putting Northampton deservedly ahead.
The goal however didnt seem to give Barnet the wake-up call they needed, just five minutes later, Barnet and Scott Tynan in particular, were very fortunate not to concede again. The influential former Aston Villa man Ian Taylor struck a powerful shot toward Tynans right hand side. Taylors effort was just off the mark, striking the post, yet the ball cannoned off the post and into the back of Tynans neck. Fortunately for the Liverpudlian keeper it went the other side of the post to the goal. In the end he even reacted quick enough to prevent the corner.
Barnet finally created a chance of their own, right at the end of a Northampton dominated first period. An excellent cross by Graham from the left wing was perfect for Grazioli to get a header in. Though last seasons top scorer connected with the ball the final effort went straight into the arms of Lee Harper in the Cobblers goal.
The half time whistle blew shortly afterwards, Barnet a goal behind, though were it not for some good goalkeeping, defending and partly luck they could well have been more than just a single goal separating Colin Calderwood and Paul Faircloughs sides.
The early stages of the second half were very similar to most of the first, Northampton looking the more dangerous side. Both Sabin and Bojic had efforts for Town, but both went over the crossbar. To the surprise of some people Paul Fairclough had decided to make no changes and continue operating in the 4-5-1 formation.
Barnet had slowly started to show signs that they were starting to look a bit more settled and maybe willing to attack the Northampton penalty area, but in the same way as against Bristol on Saturday, the opposition defence were proving very stubborn and hard to break down. However, with ten minutes gone in the second half, Barnet were looking a lot more relaxed and dangerous going forward.
A high clearance was brought down under control by Richie Graham, twenty five yards from the Cobblers goal. Looking up, Graham knocked the ball over to Grazioli to chase onto. However, Grazioli received the ball in a position too wide for the shot and under pressure from two defenders. However, he controlled it well and despite almost losing his balance managed to turn his marker, look up and square it across the box. To the delight of the Bees the pass was met by Dean Sinclair who had made a charging run into the area. Cooly he poked it under Lee Harper to make the scores level. Apart from Graziolis first half header this was Barnets first clear-cut opening of the night and Sinclair had taken full advantage.
Faircloughs players now looked full of confidence and more like the side that strolled the Nationwide Conference last season. Barnet were really getting into their stride, however, just four minutes after equalising a potential disaster occurred. A floodlight failure.
The travelling contingent instantly began singing accusations of a sabotage, seeing as Barnet had just started to get going. However, it turned out a power cut in the Hunsbury area of Northampton had led to a power surge at the stadium. However, the staff at the ground reacted very well and whilst for a long while after the failure at the Sixfields much of Northampton was in darkness within twenty minutes all the lights were back on. However, as soon as the just a few of the lights were back Paul Fairclough got his players back out on the pitch training, even bringing training cones out, later saying he needed to get the players back to the right body temperature.
So after a thirty minute interval, the players being giving ten minutes to warm up once power had been restored, the game restarted. It was unclear how this long stoppage would affect Barnet. The Bees had started to really look sharp just before the power failure, but the break gave the Cobblers the chance to re-group.
However, Barnet carried on as if theyd never stopped. The extra-long warm up during the break had them still fresh and looking more dangerous than the home side. Northamptons penalty area was now under a lot more pressure than at any other time and Barnet had the confidence to try their luck. Following a clearance Harper was off his line, so Welsh youth international left back Adam Gross tried an audacious long range lob. However, he miss hit totally, slicing the ball well over. Yet this showed Barnet were willing to have a go.
Dwane Lee almost scored a most bizarre goal shortly after Gross effort. A sublime cross-field pass by Bailey was met by Lee just inside the area, but wide of the goal. The central midfielder volleyed the ball across the box, with everyone leaving it, it almost crept in.
Barnet were playing with real determination now, too much from Grazioli in Premier League referee Barry Knights book, quite literally as the Barnet forward picked up the Bees first booking of the season after going in too hard on Chambers.
A minute later and scorer of the first goal Dean Sinclair, very nearly made it two. The nineteen year old made one of his trademark surging runs forward. The Cobblers defenders continued to allow him space, and though Grazioli was screaming for it to his left Sinclair decided to have a go himself, unleashing a powerful, rising shot from twenty five yards. However his fine effort was equally matched, Harper tipping the ball over for a corner. A few minutes later Sinclair tried his luck again, on the edge of the box he turned and volleyed goal wards, though this time his attempt was feeble and Harper gladly gathered an easy shot.
Barnet were firmly in command in the final stages, playing some fantastic football and looking dangerous every time they burst forward from midfield. Sinclair, Graham and Bailey all looked like they could steal a late winner and the latter did just that.
Nicky Bailey received the ball inside the Northampton half, in good space. As he and the rest of the midfield had done on many occasions in the second half he charged towards the penalty area. Yet this time he did not stop and look for the pass. It was clear he was brimming with confidence and he showed this as he skipped past three challenges and held off another defender. It was a scintillating run, however it looked as though he was going to be forced too wide to shoot. Unfortunately for Northampton Town this wasnt the case. A sweetly struck shot with his left foot went right across the goal, trickling into Lee Harpers bottom left hand corner, sending un-fancied Barnet into a 2-1 lead with two minutes to go.
The travelling support behind the goal went into raptures of celebration, but there was still two minutes of normal time, along with an additional two for stoppage. Both Hatch and Norville came on to help out in the dying stages, Grazioli and Graham departing. Despite Northampton managing to get forward a solid Barnet defence weathered the storm and held out for a very much un-expected away win.
Though this is very early days in the season this will no doubt do wonders for the confidence of a young Barnet side. Though they had a very poor first half the second half display showed that this exciting Barnet side have the potential to do extremely well again this season. The big spending Cobblers are strongly fancied to gain automatic promotion this year, many tipping them to be champions come May, but after that performance, who can write off successive promotions for Paul Faircloughs Barnet?
Barnet: Tynan (8), Hendon (7), Yakubu (6) (Gross)(7), King (8), Charles (8), Strevens (8), Lee (7), Sinclair (9), Bailey (8), Graham (8) (Norville) (6), Grazioli (7) (Hatch) (6)
Unused Subs: Flitney, Soares
Bees Goals: Sinclair (56), Bailey (88)
Iain Dalziels Barnet Man of the Match: Dean Sinclair, At times he looked on another level to the other twenty one players on the pitch. Some of his forward runs were outstanding and Northampton found him very hard to contain. However, in the second half every Barnet player should be commended, an excellent team effort in the final half an hour especially.
Northampton Town: Harper, Crowe, Chambers, Dyche, Taylor, Low (Brett Johnson), Jess (Galbraith), Hunt, Bojic, Sabin, Dudfield
Unused Subs: Bunn, Bradley Johnson, Cross
Cobblers Goal: Dudfield (32)
Iain Dalziels Northampton Town Man of the Match: Eric Sabin, though Sabin didnt get on the score sheet he looked very dangerous and was lively throughout. His pace on the break, in the first half in particular, may well have punished Barnet more on another day.
Attendance: 5817 (614 Barnet)
By Iain Dalziel at Underhill
Barnet 1-1 Bristol Rovers
Graham Agogo
Saturday 6th August 2005, Underhill, Coca-Cola Football League Two
A Barnet side, kitted out in their new black strip, began their second spell in the Football League with a 1-1 draw at home to Bristol Rovers.
The Bees looked on course to get the season off to the best possible start with a win, yet former Barnet man, Junior Agogo snatched a late equaliser, meaning Faircloughs men had to settle for a draw.
Barnet FC and everyone connected to the club had been waiting for this day for months and there was a great sense of anticipation, nerves and excitement at Underhill pre-match. The players were greeted onto the pitch with a fantastic roar, this was the moment everyone had been waiting for, Barnet were back in the Football League.
The players were clearly keen to get off to a good start, Barnet starting the first ten minutes in a very attacking fashion. Number eight Dean Sinclair looked like hed picked up where hed left off last season and had began the game at a frantic pace, terrorising Rovers early on. Unsurprisingly it was Sinclair who had Barnet and the games first effort on goal. His chipped effort from the edge of the box had to be well tipped over by Rovers new keeper Scott Shearer.
However, Sinclair clearly wasnt disheartened by his failed attempt and continued to look for the opening goal. His second effort came around the seven minute mark, a powerful strike across the face of goal from the edge of the area, sailed just over the bar, much to Shearers relief. It looked like the former Norwich youngster would make it third time lucky, when following a great burst into the box down the right hand side, Dwane Lee squared it back to him. Yet a split second of hesitation proved costly, Christian Edwards clearing the ball to safety.
Moments later came a nasty injury to Rovers centre back, John Anderson. The Pirates defender took a hard blow to his nose and subsequently played no further part, being replaced by Hinton and going straight to Barnet General Hospital, where it was announced the player had a broken nose.
After the good start from the Bees the pace dropped slightly and a rather un-adventurous Bristol side started to venture forward. However, despite looking more keen to attack Barnet they created very little. Midway through the half Agogo almost got a good chance. A cross was swung into the box, but Agogo failed to meet it, claiming a nudge in the back from Anthony Charles had forced him to fail to make contact, yet the referee gave nothing. Though on the whole Bristol Rovers did very little in the opening forty five minutes, two free kicks were awarded to them within shooting range, yet both went straight into Barnets wall.
Barnet however were unlucky not to go ahead, minutes before the interval. A Grazioli header was well cleared off the line by Bass. That was last seasons top scorers first real chance, having been caught offside on several other attacks, by a very flag happy linesman.
Graziolis blocked header was the last real action of what was not the most entertaining of first halfs. However, with the score 0-0 at half time, the game could still go either way, neither side creating any clear cut chances so far.
The second half began in much the same way as the majority of the first forty five minutes had been played, Barnet looking the more dangerous of the two sides, but neither team able to really break each other down and find that all important opening goal.
Barnet looked very dangerous at times, in terms of build up play, but in the final third couldnt break down a stubborn Rovers defence, who were well marshalled by one time Wales international, Christian Edwards.
Rovers best attack of the game up to that point came around the hour mark, when an otherwise quiet Junior Agogo, went on one of his mazy runs that the Barnet faithful know all about. Picking up the ball down the left he made a delightful run down the wing, giving Yakubu a torrid time. In the end Agogos former playing colleague, Yakubu, simply couldnt cope with Agogos pace and trickery and brought him down on the edge of the area. The young centre back was lucky to escape with just a warning, rather than the yellow card the tackle appeared to deserve.
However, after much frustration and failed attacks the games first goal came, thirteen minutes from time, and it was the home side who got it.
A fantastic long ball from Ismail Yakubu was chased down by Graham. Scott Shearer came charging out of his goal to get it, but the Northern Irish winger managed to beat him to it and knocked it round the debutant in the Rovers goal. With the goalkeeper beaten Graham calmly pulled it back and side footed it goal wards. Neither Hinton or Bass on the line could stop it, his shot going just between the two defenders and rolling into the net for Barnets first goal in the Coca-Cola League 2 and to put them 1-0 up.
Now Bristol were behind they knew they had to stop simply defending and trying to play on the counter-attack and come at Barnet for an equaliser. Only a minute after going behind they won a free kick in a dangerous position. Yet once again Elliots effort struck the Barnet wall.
However, Barnet knew they were going to be in for a tense finale and Fairclough decided to bring on some fresh legs up front, recent signing Jason Norville replaced Grazioli, who had worked tirelessly all afternoon against his former employees, however had found it tough as a lone striker and not got the opportunity he needed to open his account for the new season.
Just a minute after Barnet had taken off the former Bristol Rovers forward, the man who went the other way in the same transfer deal, Junior Agogo, grabbed a late equaliser for the Pirates.
Ian Hendon received the ball on the right hand side, but was closed down by pint-sized winger Ryan Williams, who had been brought on as a substitute. Rather than simply clearing his lines Hendon tried to take the ball around Williams and got dispossessed. However, Williams ball into the box went straight to Yakubu, but his poor clearance went straight back to Williams. This time the Bristol winger whipped a superb cross into the Barnet area. Agogo was given far too much space at the back and met the cross with a firm header, flat footing Scott Tynan in the Barnet goal, the ball going to his left side.
Though there were suspicions that Agogo had been offside, he later admitted he thought he was, hence his delayed celebration, which considering some of the stick he had received from sections of the home support, was very toned down. Unfortunately for Barnet the flag stayed down and it was 1-1.
Liam Hatch was thrown on in a late attempt to snatch a win, though if anything it looked as though a now lively Bristol Rovers could steal all three points.
However, neither side found the killer touch for a late winner and both teams went away with a point.
Paul Fairclough was visibly disappointed, the mood in the dressing room afterwards was apparently not good, the Bees feeling they had thrown it away. Bristol Rovers manager Ian Atkins was clearly relieved at his teams late goal, describing their performance simply as crap.
Despite maybe feeling they deserved to win, and on the balance of play they certainly did, Barnet should not be down at the final outcome, as there were many positives to take out of a solid performance.
This coming Tuesday Barnet face a daunting trip to title favourites Northampton Town, at the Sixfields Stadium. However, on the back of a display like this one, they should not go into the game fearing Northampton, it could well prove a very close affair. With a large away following expected Barnet should get all the vocal support they need, but only time will tell if the boys in black can produce a performance worthy of taking maximum points on Tuesday night.
Barnet: Scott Tynan (6), Ian Hendon (6), Simon King (7), Ismail Yakubu (8), Anthony Charles (6), Ben Strevens (6) (Liam Hatch (6) ), Nicky Bailey (7), Dwane Lee (7), Dean Sinclair (7), Richie Graham (6), Giuliano Grazioli (7) (Jason Norville (7) )
(player ratings in brackets)
Unused Subs: Ross Flitney, Louie Soares, Adam Gross
Bees Goal: Richie Graham (77)
Iain Dalziels Barnet Man of the Match: Ismail Yakubu, was superb on his debut at this level, though his miss hit clearance let on proved costly, it shouldnt draw the attention from what was an otherwise solid display by Yakubu.
Attendance: 3237
Bristol Rovers: Scott Shearer, John Bass (Ryan Williams), Christian Edwards, John Anderson (Craig Hinton), Steve Elliot, Robbie Ryan, Craig Disley, Aaron Lescott, Stuart Campbell, Richard Walker (Jefferson Louis)
Unused Subs: Ali Gibb, Jamie Forrester
Rovers Goal: Junior Agogo (87)
Iain Dalziels Bristol Rovers Man of the Match: Christian Edwards, he led his defence very well, making things very difficult for Barnet to break down
Away Support: 973 |
