Bury vs Barnet - Reported by Hannah Ingram at Gigg Lane
After losing their unbeaten record on a cold night at Morecambe in midweek, Bury returned to home turf to face a Barnet side sitting two places below them in the table. Both sides were looking for the points to take them closer to the play offs, with Barnet drawing their last two matches and taking them to eleventh place. Alan Knill named an unchanged side, meaning that the influential Michael Jones had to sit this one out as well.
After winning a free kick for handball on 6 minutes, Dawson took it short to Newey, who released Worrall down the left, who then crossed to Morrell in front of goal. His shot needed a stronger finish and was gathered by Cole in the Barnet net. Worrall made room for himself in the box on 15 minutes after receiving the ball on the right. He possibly should have struck the ball sooner, because after moving from one side of the box to the other, his eventual shot was blocked.
Yellow card for Barnet on 19 minutes - Mark Hughes
Bury had played without BBM for around ten minutes as he had to receive treatment for a facial injury, but he returned to the field on 25 minutes with a fresh shirt on. Sodje made a surging run forward after winning the ball just inside his half on 30 minutes, before passing to Racchi on the right. He crossed the ball in, looking for Sodje's head, but Yakubu had it covered, clearing the danger.
Nardiello latched onto a loose ball forward on 41 minutes, running down the left wing with Dawson running into the box to help. He eventually opted to try a shot from an acute angle which forced a save from Cole. Moments later and Newey took on the Barnet defence, ending up on the left of the box, crossing to the waiting Racchi, but the ball sped in front of him and away from danger.
Four minutes of additional time were indicated by the fourth official as Worrall ran down the left wing. From the resulting throw in, Morrell was then upended in the box by Mark Hughes, giving Bury a penalty.
GOAL! Nardiello made no mistake from the spot kick, sending Cole the wrong way and powering the ball to the right of the net, sending the Bury fans behind the net wild.
Shakers 1 Bees 0
The extra time was soon over, and Bury took their lead to the dressing room. The first half was largely uneventful as neither side got a strong foothold in the game, but Bury piled on the pressure in the closing stages and got their reward. After a few wasted chances, they were gifted an opportunity with the penalty in the late stages, and thankfully Nardiello made it count.
Half Time - Shakers 1 Bees 0
Racchi managed to break free down the right wing on 48 minutes after Nardiello had been battling for possession. Taking the ball deep, he then passed to Dawson waiting just inside the box, only to see his effort go well over the bar. Racchi braced forward on a counter attack on 52 minutes before squaring to Worrall, whose cross was far too nippy for Morrell and Nardiello, skimming in front of their faces.
Morrell had a golden opportunity to double Bury's lead on the hour, after latching onto a loose ball in the Barnet box. Shooting from a tricky angle to the left of the net, he forced a good save from Cole.
Substitution for Bury on 69 minutes - Ryan Lowe on for Daniel Nardiello
Some good work between Morrell and Lowe on 71 minutes resulted with Morrell blasting over the bar. Lowe had set him up in the box after making space on the left wing, but the angle was too tight for Morrell to finish.
Substitution for Bury on 71 minutes - Richie Baker on for Danny Racchi
Double substitution for Barnet on 72 minutes - Yannick Bolasie on for Albert Jarrett, Jake Hyde on for Craig McAllister
Yellow card for Bury on 73 minutes - Richie Baker
Substitution for Barnet on 76 minutes - Paul Furlong on for Albert Adomah
GOAL! Bury had their lead doubled with ten minutes remaining after Worrall capitalised on an iffy header back to the keeper from Yakubu was left hanging in the air long enough for Worrall to muscle in. He initially flicked the ball over the head of Cole in the Barnet net, before heading into an open net.
Shakers 2 Bees 0
Three minutes of additional time were indicated by the fourth official as Bury continued to keep possession with Baker running forward. He was judged to have been pulled back by Mark Hughes, which subsequently saw him receive his second yellow card of the match.
Red card for Barnet in added time - Mark Hughes (second bookable offence)
The referee soon called time on the match, which saw Bury forgot their loss at Morecambe and carry on with winning ways at home. After an initially slow start to the game for both teams, Bury eventually found their feet and were the better team on the day. Despite not managing a single shot on target, Barnet turned on the style with their corners and had a few close calls. This win saw Bury climb up to 8th place just outside the play offs, whilst Barnet slipped to 13th.
Full Time - Shakers 2 Bees 0
Attendance - 2511 (84 Visitors)
