Was this a good result? Probably not given the fact that two points have gone with the wind and that Barnet had got themselves into the lead late in the second half. But there again, the Bees did recover from being a goal down, Liam Hatch scored a magnificent equaliser and the unbeaten run now stretches to ten matches.
It must also frustrate Bees fans when a victory today could have propelled their team into second spot.
The Bees kept an unchanged line-up from the team that started at Wrexham the week previous, but welcomed back, to the subs bench at least, Michael Leary, out with injury since late August.
All this was of no concern to Accrington Stanley who proved today at Underhill they are a seriously good team, with strengths in all departments.
As early as the second minute a lunge by Hatch nearly brought a caution, and moments later Adam Birchall was given a gilt edged opportunity to give the home side a lead when a sloppy back pass was put into his path, but the Stanley keeper Ian Dunbavin was equal to the task.
Joe Devera was showing the attacking side of his game when on ten minutes he burst through from midfield but his deft cross evaded both defenders and attackers alike.
The alert Roscoe Dsane and the towering Paul Mullin, the front pairing for Stanley, provided a constant danger, although Dsane, playing on the last defender was frequently offside.
The game was scoreless at half-time and prior to the second period commencing, Ian Hendon put the team through a series a sprints in an attempt to inject some further zip into the Bees play.
Stanley took the lead when following a foul by Sagi Burton on Dsane Ian Craney powered a free kick beyond Lee Harrison in the 51st minute. A stricter interpretation of the laws could have seen Burton dismissed.
Continuing his rich vein of form it was a Liam Hatch cracker that levelled the scores. Some 20 yards from goal he controlled a high ball, took a stride forward, evaded his marker, with his ferocious shot thundering into the roof of the net.
The Bees were now in the ascendancy and in the 70th minute Burton gave the Bees a lead with a well struck shot from inside the area, however the lead was to be short-lived.
Taking advantage of a melee around Harrison's goal Dsane was on hand to put the ball over the line for Stanley's equaliser on 83 minutes.
In a final throw of the dice, the striking pair of Giuliano Grazioli and Jason Norville were introduced to see if a victory could be conjured in the final moments. But it was to no avail.
The was a game in which both sides created numerous opportunities. The woodwork came to the rescue on occasions for both outfits and perhaps when you are a goal behind a draw can be seen as a achievement of sorts, but the Bees having worked their way back into the game and then having established a lead will be mighty disappointed not to have recorded their fourth home win of the season. For Stanley this was their first draw in the league this campaign.
The Bees road show pulls up next week at Gigg Lane when Bury host Barnet.
David Bloomfield
