Five Conclusions: Barnet 5 Yeovil Town 0

To be totally honest, Gloverscast Ben has been putting this off throughout Wednesday morning, but we have to get to it eventually.

The coffee is poured, DAZN has been logged back into to watch some bits back, and here are Ben’s Five Conclusions from Tuesday night.

We had turned a corner, into on coming traffic. After a trio of really positive results and some good performances, this game always felt like a tough one, but let’s get it right, Barnet were brilliant and took full advantage of their opportunity to really put a stamp on their title charge and run in. They saw a chance to really dominate a threadbare Yeovil and took it, and who can begrudge them? It was fast, free flowing, interchanging, the nine or ten Barnet camped in and around our box for 90+ minutes made it all look very , very easy. They’re by far the best side I’ve seen this season and should go up as Champions.

but…

We let Barnet look like Brazil. From the first minute on Tuesday night – actually from the 45th minute on Saturday – Yeovil Town tried to park a proverbial bus.  In shades of what the Parma Violet party poopers did to Notts County that one time, we set up on Tuesday night, with such little desire to attack that almost immediately the game was set out as a training session for the hosts.

Now, of course, we’ve got one fit or available central defender, it’s always going to square pegs in round holes, but when the home keeper is playing neat little one-twos on the half way line in the 20th minute of the game, I felt like it was going to be a long night. The first two goals are poor defending, the best part of 20 players in a penalty area and no-one thinks to stand somewhere near Callum Stead? or stick a boot in before Ryan Glover could poke the ball home after he reacted quicker to a brilliant save from Aidan Stone?

Frank Nouble said after the match, we went in with a game plan, it didn’t work and we never sought to ever really even try something different, that’s maybe what hurts the most.

Heads dropped. Actually, this hurts the most, not for me, sat in my comfy chair with a cuppa and hobnob watching the game, but for the supporters who were there. I know their support is always appreciated and it truly is, I know that for a fact. But, after Michael Smith’s injury, after the first two goals, after the only half chance of the first half fell to Harvey Greenslade, in those key flash point moments it just felt like no-one was able to galvanise the group.

Sonny played a few nice passes through midfield, Kyrell Wilson made some runs into the corner areas for through balls and Nouble did what he could to try and make the ball stick. But, where was the noise to get each other going? Where was the keeper demanding more from his defence each time another shot/cross/chance came and went – he kept it from being a cricket score by the way, he’s entitled to politely enquire for a little help.

What ever magic tricks need to happen to get Williams and Wannell back on the pitch need to happen quickly – someone call in Derren Brown or something. 

We need the RIGHT signings. There’s almost no point putting a 19-year-old, who’s played four minutes of EFL Trophy football into this group right now, and given the nature of the season, the timing and the budget, it might be that we can only get access to those type of players though. I think of times where we’ve brought in Paul Wotton and Darren Ward in the past, those types players don’t grow on trees in March, with 12 weeks of the season still to go.

Mark Cooper spoke of players that know what it means to play for a club like Yeovil, and he’s absolutely right, but they’re not on benches or with the reserves of EFL Clubs, they’re not cheap either, leaders and “men” aren’t easy to find. We only have one loan-spot left, remember, so the next few days of recruitment needs to be diligent and not a knee jerk reaction to just stick a body in a shirt at Halifax.

So what can we change for Saturday? I cannot for the life of me think we’re going to park another bus in West Yorkshire, what’s the point? We’re going to need cover on the right side of defence, that’s for sure, I wouldn’t be totally against a back four of Bernard – Cooper – FC-D – Whittle, but that leaves us little to no protection in front, so either we find a right back (Josh Sims? or a recall of Jordan Thomas?) or we sacrifice that vital level of cover that Cooper gives us. If we do that, then we have to spend more time in the opposition half. I thought Ryan McLean showed a nice turn of foot on a couple of occasions, as did Lewys Twamley, but nothing more than flashes. So maybe there’s something to work with there, especially if Ciaran McGuckin doesn’t his delivery of Holy Water in time.

See you in Halifax!