A second half come back by the Bees was not quite enough to take this tie to penalties; the two goal lead Brighton had established was a sufficient cushion to see the Seagulls into the regional quarter-finals.

Manager Paul Fairclough had declared his intention of playing his strongest available team and true to his word the only changes from the previous match was that Joe O'Cearuill replaced the injured Ismail Yakubu at centre back and Max Porter deputised in midfield for Josh Wright who was absent representing England at U19 level.

In the opening period of the first half the away side took the game to Brighton and an Adam Birchall volley across the face of the goal nearly gave the Bees an early lead.

It proved significant that Barnet were unable to make this period of pressure count because during the next phase of the game when Brighton applied pressure they were able to convert this into a goal advantage.

When Jake Robinson for Brighton rounded Lee Harrison, despite more than a hint of offside, many observers were of the view that Nicky Nicolau had successfully managed to prevent the ball crossing the line. The referee's assistant however was decisive in his decision making and after 21 minutes the Bees were behind to the League One outfit.

Jason Puncheon was again proving difficult to handle and he was raining in shots on Michel Kuiper's goal from all angles, striking the ball either right or left footed. Allied to the tireless running of striker Birchall this tie was never out of reach as far as Barnet were concerned.

However Barnet's task was made all the more onerous when just two minutes into the second half Albion extended their lead. The Bees defence had ample opportunity to clear the danger, but as the ball ricocheted between players the alert Dean Cox powered a header past Harrison.

This could have signalled the end of the match as a contest but Barnet, pass by pass, gradually were able to force themselves back into the tie.

With just over 15 minutes remaining Birchall latched onto an astute pass by Bees midfielder Neal Bishop and was able to hit the back of the net; the outcome was now in the balance.

Barnet pushed for an equaliser, but did not really carve out a genuine opportunity, although the very last touch of the game saw Birchall fire an effort high over the bar, which was indicative of the effort that was exerted in an attempt to take the tie to a penalty shoot out.

Not all the sections of the ground had been opened for the game and the travelling Barnet fans had been allocated an area which normally serves as a family stand. It did afford sufficient space for a handful of giant Barnet FC flags to be displayed to great effect and they attracted admiring comments from Seagull supporters.

The players have a day to recover from their efforts and then gather to refocus on the task that they will face when Barnet entertain Mansfield Town this Saturday.

NB the Barnet v Mansfield Town game will Kick Off at 1 o'clock.

David Bloomfield