A draw at home against Morecambe will not see dancing in the streets in Barnet but after a long wait the Bees have a point to their name and as Paul Fairclough said after the match that all things must have a beginning, then maybe, just maybe, the season can get now under way.
The Bees boss acknowledged that his team have not played well to date but was full of praise today for his team in terms of commitment and desire to get back on track and there was evidence from the opening moments that he had instilled a will to win into his charges.
Barnet kicked off and from the resulting diagonal pass Cliff Akurang won a header which set the scene for a Bees performance where possession of the ball was contested eagerly by a Barnet player all afternoon.
Post match Morecambe boss Sammy McIlroy considered himself content to be going back to Lancashire with a point. Such statements are often code to disguise the fact that one side should really have run out as the winner.
Barnet certainly created chances to score today with eleven shots and forcing twelve corners.Granted not every opportunity was taken, but this was a significant improvement from the display at Lincoln last week. Barry Roche in goal for the Shrimps was much the busier keeper.
The returning Nicky Nicolau was given a warm welcome by the Underhill crowd and a berth in the starting line up on the left hand side of midfield. He was involved from the very first when he delivered an inviting cross which was turned goalwards by Adam Birchall, Roche being happy to concede a corner.
In the seventeenth minute the Bees took a lead. Birchall controlled a difficult ball and found Albert Adomah out wide on the half way line. Adomah accelerated like a cheetah chasing prey, evaded a handful of challenges, found himself in the penalty area and crashed a right footed shot that had the net rippling. A terrific goal.
In retrospect Barnet needed to establish a two goal advantage and in the first half a Neal Bishop's free kick and an Ismail Yakubu's header came close to doing just that.
A goal for Bishop would have been a deserved reward for a midfield display which saw him work hard without the ball and when in possession make good use of it.
Minutes before half time Morecambe drew level when Diarmuid O'Carroll controlled a high ball in the area, swivelled and hit a fine shot past Lee Harrison.
Football can be a game of "ifs" sometimes, but Barnet fans could feel, with a modicum of justification, that if only their team could have held onto their lead until half time then maybe the first win could have been chalked up.
The Shrimps had their moments. They are big and well drilled and in Stewart Drummond they had a midfielder who was more than able to influence proceedings.
In the second half Ashley Carew had a good effort, cutting in from the right and striking the ball with his left foot and late on both substitute Luke Medley and Kenny Gillet had creditable efforts on goal.
Of course in the final analysis Barnet did not do enough to undeniably deserve all three points, but they were fully deserving of a draw and a point and we haven't always been able to say that.
The test for Barnet is clearly to use this draw, which ends a sequence of defeats, as some sort of platform to go out and win matches and the Bees are presented with their next opportunity to do just that against Bury at Underhill next Saturday.
David Bloomfield.
