Boreham Wood v Barnet
Monday 2nd January 2023, 3.00pm
LV BET Stadium Meadow Park, Vanarama National League
The Wood kick-off 2023 with the visit of neighbours Barnet, looking for revenge against their local rivals after defeat at The Hive last time out on Boxing Day.
IN FOCUS: BARNET
Barnet have spent much of the current century bouncing between the Conference and League Two, with a third relegation of the 2000s in 2018 preceding a difficult period for the club which saw them saved from a fourth relegation by the abandonment of the 2020/21 National League season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This is alongside a handful of mediocre league finishes, but their luck is seemingly started to turn for the better with a much more positive start to the season this time around. Under the guidance of Dean Brennan who was initially appointed as Caretaker Head Coach in 2021, the Bees have enjoyed their best start to a season since they won the division in 2014/15, racking up 36 points from their opening 21 games to sit comfortably in the play-off places going into the final game of 2022.
The Bees strengthened in the summer after the likes of Ben Richards-Everton, Harry Taylor, Wesley Fonguck, Adam Marriott and Ephron Mason-Clark left the club, with the arrivals of top scorer Nicke Kabamba, Laurie Walker and Idris Kanu joining from League Two clubs to bolster the squad alongside the likes of Dale Gorman, Danny Collinge, Jerome Okimo, Moussa Diarra, Sean Shields, Harry Pritchard and Ben Wynter, who opted to depart fellow National League clubs to move to The Hive. As a result they can boast one of the highest scoring teams in the division so far this season with just four teams finding the back of the net more times, and has seen them look far more likely to finally break their duck and return to the Football League.
LAST TIME OUT
Barnet 2-1 Boreham Wood
Monday 26th December 2022
Vanarama National League
Victory for Barnet was confirmed in the dying seconds as Ryan De Havilland struck deep into stoppage time to consign the nine-man Wood to a heart-breaking defeat on Boxing Day.
It was the visitors who came out the blocks quickest and came closest to an opener early on, with Bruno Andrade having two chances in as many minutes go amiss. This was as good as it got for the Wood during the first half though, with Barnet growing into the game when they forced a succession of corners. Former Wood man Idris Kanu saw a shot from 25-yards sail just wide before a golden opportunity fell to Nicke Kabamba, who saw a shot blocked on the first attempt before getting a second bite of the cherry, but Cameron Coxe was well-placed to clear off the line as the Bees will have been disappointed to not take the lead before the interval.
The hosts took their momentum into the second half and almost immediately went close to an opener, as Sam Beard struck just wide once more. Jack Payne would have a rare chance saved by Laurie Walker shortly after, but he would soon rue this as Kabamba gave Barnet a deserved lead just before the hour-mark when he finished well from close range. The Wood were keen to not let this stun them too much as they searched for a route back into the game, but a moment of controversy saw both sides reduced to ten men when Andrade and Kabamba saw red from a seemingly innocuous off-the-ball incident. For a time the sending offs seemed to help the visitors regain some control, and they found a leveller when Payne bundled the ball home following a goalmouth scramble with ten minutes left. This spurred the Wood on and they almost scored a winner when Dennon Lewis shot over with two minutes remaining of normal time, but they would end up retreating into their own half into stoppage time and paid the price. Deep into added time Femi Ilesamni saw red for a second bookable offence and from the resulting free kick, the ball was played to De Havilland who struck a delightful effort to give Barnet all three points at the death.
RECENT FORM
Boreham Wood (H) W1-0
Plymouth Parkway (H) W1-0
Wealdstone (H) W2-0
Accrington Stanley (A) L1-0
Torquay United (H) W1-0
Chelmsford City (A) W0-1
Barnet have been in positive form throughout the season, and have come into the own over the past couple months after a relatively inconsistent start to the campaign. Their recent form has been no different, and they have lost just one game from their last nine in all competitions. Victory over Chelmsford City in the FA Cup saw the Bees stretch their unbeaten run to four games before overcoming Torquay United to make it five, but their streak would be swiftly ended after Ethan Hamilton’s only goal of the game meant a repeat of last season’s FA Cup Fourth Round Qualifier between the Wood and Barnet wasn’t on the cards, with the Bees being eliminated by Accrington Stanley who would go on to draw Luke Garrard’s side in the Second Round. However, they bounced back with victory over local rivals Wealdstone a week later and they would ensure they maintained a winning run when Daniel Powell’s late winner secured two from two against Plymouth Parkway, taking that victory into the Boxing Day fixture against the Wood which they won dramatically in the dying seconds for the second time in a row.
IN THE DUGOUT: DEAN BRENNAN
Whilst playing for Hemel Hempstead Town, Dean Brennan was appointed as caretaker boss at the age of just 29, fulfilling a player/coach role with Dunstable Town as well. After retiring, Brennan transitioned into management properly and returned to Hemel as manager, where he would enjoy a successful six years at Vauxhall Road. He guided the Tudors to their highest ever league finish before overseeing promotion to the Conference South after winning the Southern Premier League by ten clear points, before spells with Billericay Town and Kingstonian followed. Brennan later joined Wealdstone and led the club to the National League South title, but resigned two years later to become Head of Football at Barnet, briefly holding the role before returning to management to replace Harry Kewell initially as Caretaker Head Coach, later being offered the role permanently.
ONE TO WATCH: HARRY PRITCHARD
Having spent time with Flackwell Heath and Burnham early on in his career, Harry Pritchard made the move to Maidenhead United in 2012 and would prove to be an invaluable decision. Six-and-a-half years with the Magpies brought over 200 appearances and 41 league goals from the wing, ten of which came in their successful title-winning season in 2016/17 which included a brace that secured the National League South trophy. His further form in the National League saw him notch 14 goals in the fifth tier along with 12 assists, and he earnt a move to League One outfit Blackpool where he remained for one season, seeing him make his debut in the Football League. He later joined Bradford City on a two-year deal, but injuries restricted his game time at Valley Parade and he returned to the fifth tier after two seasons in Yorkshire to sign for Eastleigh. He impressed during a single season at the Silverlake Stadium and opted to make the switch to league rivals Barnet in the summer, where he has racked up eight goals this season – the second highest at the club.
LAST TIME WE MET
Barnet 2-1 Boreham Wood
Monday 26th December 2022
Vanarama National League
Victory for Barnet was confirmed in the dying seconds as Ryan De Havilland struck deep into stoppage time to consign the nine-man Wood to a heart-breaking defeat on Boxing Day.
It was the visitors who came out the blocks quickest and came closest to an opener early on, with Bruno Andrade having two chances in as many minutes go amiss. This was as good as it got for the Wood during the first half though, with Barnet growing into the game when they forced a succession of corners. Former Wood man Idris Kanu saw a shot from 25-yards sail just wide before a golden opportunity fell to Nicke Kabamba, who saw a shot blocked on the first attempt before getting a second bite of the cherry, but Cameron Coxe was well-placed to clear off the line as the Bees will have been disappointed to not take the lead before the interval.
The hosts took their momentum into the second half and almost immediately went close to an opener, as Sam Beard struck just wide once more. Jack Payne would have a rare chance saved by Laurie Walker shortly after, but he would soon rue this as Kabamba gave Barnet a deserved lead just before the hour-mark when he finished well from close range. The Wood were keen to not let this stun them too much as they searched for a route back into the game, but a moment of controversy saw both sides reduced to ten men when Andrade and Kabamba saw red from a seemingly innocuous off-the-ball incident. For a time the sending offs seemed to help the visitors regain some control, and they found a leveller when Payne bundled the ball home following a goalmouth scramble with ten minutes left. This spurred the Wood on and they almost scored a winner when Dennon Lewis shot over with two minutes remaining of normal time, but they would end up retreating into their own half into stoppage time and paid the price. Deep into added time Femi Ilesamni saw red for a second bookable offence and from the resulting free kick, the ball was played to De Havilland who struck a delightful effort to give Barnet all three points at the death.
HAVEN’T WE MET BEFORE? IDRIS KANU
A West Ham United academy product, Idris Kanu was unable to break into the first team during his time at Upton Park and moved to Aldershot Town in search of regular game time, rejecting an offer from Manchester United in the process. This proved to be a successful decision, with the forward playing 31 times in all competitions during his debut season in senior football, as well as becoming the youngest player to appear and score in the league for the Shots, doing so at the age of 16. His form saw him earn a move to League One side Peterborough United, and despite playing 28 times during his debut season at London Road Stadium found himself available for loan on numerous occasions. He subsequent departed the Posh temporarily three times, with one of these stints seeing him find himself at Meadow Park.
The forward featured 18 times for the Wood during a difficult 2018/19 season, with the club struggling off the back of a play-off final defeat at the end of 2017/18 which saw them lose a number of key players in attacking areas, including Bruno Andrade, Angelo Balanta, Morgan Ferrier and Michael Folivi. Kanu came in as a late replacement having joined in January 2019 and was tasked with helping the team improve their goalscoring feats, with the future Sierra Leone international contributing four goals during his brief time in Hertfordshire. He subsequently played a further 41 times for Peterborough, but went out on loan once more after returning from AFCON 2021 which preceded the decision to transfer-list him upon his return. He went on to join Barnet on a permanent basis in the summer, and he has scored five goals in 17 appearances for the Bees.
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