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| Underhill - The Former Home Of Barnet |
As Bulls News Twitter feed reminded us, six years ago many of us were at Edgar Street, more in hope than expectation to see if we could avoid the drop. Irony of ironies, today I was at The Hive to see if Barnet could similarly pull off a last match miracle. It was us or Barnet six years ago, and while we gained the win, they secured the point they needed to stay up and today it was Barnet who won, only to be relegated due to Morecambe scrambling a point at Coventry.
This season has not been kind to Barnet, nor to Chesterfield. I remember going to Chesterfield in August 2010 and seeing Hereford soundly beaten 4-0 but this season has been a nightmare for them and they were relegated to the National League for the first time in April. They were poor today, and despite having the ball in the net first, it was off side and that was as good as it got for them. Barnet have had an equally difficult time but if you have four managers during a season, what do you expect? Finally Martin Allen came back, results picked up and the team seized a lifeline when they went to Morecambe last week and won 1-0. This set up the final day survival battle. Barnet did their bit, comfortably beating Chesterfield 3-0, with well taken goals in front of a record crowd but in the end it wasn’t enough.
Most of us have other teams which we follow, perhaps because of family history, where we were brought up, or some completely illogical reasons stemming from liking the name, or a particular kit going back to childhood. When I first moved to London I lived not far from Barnet and started going down there in the days of Barry Fry and Stan Flashman in the late 1980’s. Having spent most of my time watching a league club, I was unfamiliar with the option for fans to change ends at half time and used to stand in front of the tannoy hut on the half way line. There was rarely a boring game down there, and I have retained a fondness for them (though not necessarily six years ago!).
I was at the game when Barnet were relegated from the football league in 2001 when they lost a “winner takes all” game to Torquay United 3-2. Having seen ugly scenes at both Halifax and Hereford when they dropped out of the football league, the most impressive thing that day was the dignity shown by both sets of fans in dealing with what was a difficult day. Barnet regained their football league status in 2005, lost it again in 2013 and regained it in 2015, so today’s experience was not unusual for them. They received their fate today with resigned dignity.
The last time I went to Underhill was when Hereford played there a few weeks before that Torquay game in 2012. I used to really like that ground, with the pub next door, and while work was done to get it up to league standard over the years, it retained some character. Barnet now play at The Hive, a modern set up with a good stadium and training facilities around, but it is some miles away from Barnet, and not even in the Borough of Barnet, but in Harrow. By car it is 7 ½ miles from Barnet, and by public transport it takes best part of an hour and at least 2 buses. We have so much to be grateful for with Hereford retaining Edgar Street, you can’t beat having a ground in the centre of a city. And if anyone is moaning about the cost of tickets at Hereford next season, today cost me £25!
Now my attention and I am sure that of all Hereford fans turns to where we will be playing next season, North or South. I’d prefer South, but we will see. Perhaps the next time I will see Barnet play is when Hereford return The Hive, perhaps the season after next – being ever optimistic! COYB