There are no prizes for guessing where I was at the weekend. Having kept the watching brief to highlights and online replayed matches, Barnet FC haven’t disappointed in heading for the National League title.
A 25 match unbeaten run came to an end last Saturday, the first time defeat has been suffered since October and with a derby the focus of the next outing it was time to get back on the horse and go again.
Including the visit of Wealdstone the season has just five games to play out with the Bees needing 8 points from those games to secure the title depending on York City’s results at the same time.
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This time of year the appearance of the sun is most welcome, almost the reward for the harsh winter months of wrapping up and not feeling your toes. The Hive bathed in April sunshine; the scene set for another titanic battle.
The Stones are just about holding the bottom four at bay, a revival under Neil Gibson when looked more likely to get relegated under Matt Taylor, however points still needed given some of the form of others around them.
Back on home turf the Bees welcomed Lee Ndlovu back into the starting line up and settled into their passing dominated game. The flow of the game however was being spoilt by a fussy referee, who wasn’t to improve as the game wore on.
It took until just after the half hour mark for the home side to take the lead, Ade Oluwo heading home an Anthony Hartigan perfectly flighted free kick, many expecting the Bees to then kick on with the visitors yet to lay a shot on Owen Evans goal.
The match official then failed to cover himself in glory after a serious looking injury to Myles Kenlock, despite looking at stricken defender and deciding ‘play on’ was the right call, not long after stopping play with a Stones player sitting on his backside and clearly able to get himself off the pitch but the game stopped for him, go figure!
The half time lead was that of the Bees but just a single goal to show for their efforts.
The second half was a completely different story. Wealdstone were certainly much braver and looked set to give the Bees more of a match. Evans was called upon to make a couple of superb saves, growing confidence however coming from the visitors.
And sure enough they got a deserved equaliser on 80 minutes, Harrison Sohna firing home to level the scores which was no more than Wealdstone had been threatening.
The Bees did come back but poor selection in the final third and a series of bodies in the way meant the spoils were shared and Barnet’s lead nine points before York kicked off against Aldershot.
The Shots rolled over in Yorkshire getting thumped 7-2 and the gap reduced to six points before the crucial Easter games. York play the early kick off on Good Friday away to Gateshead, the gap could be as low as three points by the time Barnet take to the field in the evening kick off as they host Eastleigh.
A fair result on the face of it, had Barnet been as clinical as they have been over the past few weeks and months the game would have been won by half time. But credit to Wealdstone who made changes and got the point to take away, more breathing space from the bottom four.
Four to go, all Barnet need to do is win out and promotion to the Football League is secured, Dean Brennan wants 100pts, eight more required for that from the last four games, strap in for a bumpy ride.
