Former Barnet goalkeeper Lee Harrison had mixed emotions on Saturday as the club bid farewell to Underhill.
The 41-year-old is now Wycombe Wanderers’ goalkeeping coach and it was a particularly emotional day for him for many reasons.
Speaking pitch side prior to kick-off, Harrison revealed his delight at being able to attend the final Barnet match at Underhill.
“When the fixtures came out the first one I looked for was this one. It just happened to fall at the end of the season and to be at the final match at Underhill is great.
“As the weeks have panned out it has turned into a really big game for the club which is something I have got used to over the years.”
He did however admit that he is sad to see the club leave the place he calls home having spent seven-years with the Bees.
“It is a sad day too because it is the place I call home, after all I played the majority of my football here.
“The place has got so much character. I don’t think you ever hear away fans say a bad thing about it, they love coming here. It is home to a lot of memories to people who have been coming here a lot of years.”
The day also saw Harrison’s son, Luke, lead the teams out and after a difficult year the former Bee thanked all for their support.
“It is massive for Luke to lead the teams out. The fans here and at a lot of clubs have been very special over the years but none more so than in the past 12 months.
“It has been a tough year and a lot of them have done a lot of work. They have helped me and given me a lot of support so I can never thank them enough for that.”
The start of the 2013/14 season will see Barnet play their home matches at The Hive and Harrison hailed its ‘amazing’ facilities.
“It is a difficult one because a lot of clubs leave grounds but because of the Premier League and the size of football now I think they have too.
“I started at The Hive when I was with Ian Hendon, it is amazing. The facilities are not that of a League Two club.”
Harrison made over 250 appearances in black and amber but with many fond memories to choose from he pinpointed the 4-3 aggregate win over Norwich City as his personal highlight.
“I loved every minute of it. There were downs obviously but you get that wherever you go, I have so many good memories especially of the supporters.
“I have a lot of good friends here and I really hope everything works out for the club.”
He added: “We played Norwich at Underhill and we went 3-1 down with 20 minutes to go. They were a Championship club at the time but we clawed one back, then another and we were level going into added time.
“Somehow we managed to get a winner before the end and we knocked Norwich out. We were dead and buried but we came back and the place was absolutely rocking, you can’t take back memories like that.”
