Gavin Tomlin had an effort well saved by Stack on 10 minutes but soon after David Stephens had an excellent chance from close range but his left footed effort went over the bar. Jamal Lowe was leading the line with no little skill and physical strength. He showed maturity beyond his years in his all-round display and was courageous when the more mature Southend defenders were giving him a most robust introduction to the demands of League 2 football. His pace and skill had them worried and they increasingly adopted borderline tactics to stop him. Kevan Hurst hit the underside of the bar with a thunderous shot from distance and then another Tomlin effort, this time benefitting from a grotesque deflection hit the cross bar as both sets of defences rode their luck to keep the score sheet blank.
The concern was that after a very decent first 45 minutes could the Bees continue in a similar vein in the second-half. The answer was a definite yes when on 54 minutes Mark Byrne, rather than lashing the ball forward, steered a pass into the path of Ricky Holmes who proceeded to run some 60 yards, skipping past numerous Southend defenders before unleashing a shot into the top corner of the net. A classic. Barnet then deservedly took a two goal lead under ten minutes later when Holmes went on a mazy run down the left before delivering a centre for the predatory poacher Hyde to steer the ball past the keeper and into the net.
Southend United v Barnet FC – Barnet Football ClubBarnet conjured up their best performance of the season at Southend and forged into a two goal lead before an extremely harsh penalty decision went against the Bees to allow the home side a lifeline back into the game. The 2-2 draw, after being two goals to the good, leaves a bitter taste, but this was the best display of the season over the entire 90 minutes. The Bees didn’t rattle at the back, looked creative going forward creating many chances and upfront carried a genuine goal threat. Graham Stack returned in goal, Andy Yiadom came in on the right on midfield with Jamal Lowe partnering Jake Hyde upfront in a 4-4-2 formation. John Oster dropped to the bench and although Collins John travelled with the squad to Roots Hall the intransigence of the Iranian FA means that international clearance issues have yet to be resolved Right from the off the teams attacked each other and it was amazing that the first-half finished goalless since opportunities were being created at both ends.
Southend United vs Barnet live score, H2H and lineups Southend United is in mixed form in England National League and they won 8 home games at Roots Hall (Southend-on-Sea, Essex). Barnet is in poor form in National ...
