The Bees hit the road again this evening for the final fixture of 2025, making the journey to the Memorial Stadium to face Bristol Rovers for the second time this month.
Barnet’s Boxing Day action in South Wales ended in a goalless draw at Rodney Parade on Friday, with the Bees ultimately not being able to test bottom-of-the-table Newport County enough in front of goal.
Dean Brennan’s side were lucky to go into half-time with the game still goalless, after the Exiles had a couple of golden opportunities to take the lead through Michael Spellman and Cameron Antwi.
The hosts also claimed for a penalty on the stroke of half-time when Idris Kanu brought down Spellman in the box, but referee Stephen Parkinson waved away the shouts that echoed around Rodney Parade.
The Bees created more opportunities to score in the second 45, with Callum Stead and Nnamdi Ofoborh both having chances to find the back of the net, but it was an afternoon where Jordan Wright wasn’t tested enough in goal, with Barnet only having the one shot on target.
One positive to take from the game is that Cieran Slicker now has eight clean sheets to his name, which sits him second in the table behind Oldham Athletic’s Matthew Hudson.
Barnet’s last five results:
Newport County 0-0 Barnet FC
Barnet FC 1-3 Salford City
Chesterfield FC 3-1 Barnet FC
Barnet FC 4-0 Bristol Rovers
Barnet fc 1-1 Harrogate Town
Bristol Rovers:
Since our reverse fixture earlier this month, the Gas have had a change in personnel in the dugout and have added one point to the board in a 1-1 draw away at Crewe Alexandra.
Bristol were involved in a five-goal Boxing Day thriller on Friday, with a 92nd – minute winner scored by Bromley’s Ben Thompson seeing the Ravens take all three points with them back to the capital.
The home side were 2-0 up in the first 45, scoring twice in six minutes through Jack Sparkes and Fabrizio Cavegn, both from inside the area.
The Gas found themselves down to ten men in the early stages of the second-half, with Shaqai Forde seeing a second yellow for a bad foul.
The visitors took advantage of the extra player and found a way back into the game with goals from Nicke Kabamba and Ben Thompson, before the latter scored his second to win the game for the South London side and leave the Pirates deflated.
Bristol Rovers’ last five results:
Bristol Rovers 2-3 Bromley
Crewe Alexandra 1-1 Bristol Rovers
Bristol Rovers 0-3 Swindon Town
Barnet FC 4-0 Bristol Rovers
Port Vale 1-0 Bristol Rovers (FA Cup R2)
In the opposition dugout:
Taking his place in the Pirates’ technical area less than two weeks ago, Steve Evans has taken over from Darrell Clarke to try and steer the ship in the second part of the campaign.
The 63-year-old has over two decades of managerial experience, with over 700 games in the EFL and has achieved back-to-back promotions with promotions with Rotherham as well as promotions with Stevenage, Crawley Town and Boston United.
Inheriting a side low on confidence and sat just above the League Two relegation zone, avoiding the drop with the Pirates would be no mean feat for Evans.
Evans’ fierce energy and unwavering competitiveness define his management philosophy, which is something he will need a lot of to guide the Gas away from the bottom two come the end of the campaign.
One to watch:
Goalscorer Fabrizio Cavegn has added another strike to his tally for the Gas recently since their visit to the Hive, taking his total to eight so far this campaign.
The 23-year-old Swiss forward is experiencing his first taste of English football after scoring 13 goals in 36 appearances in the Swiss second tier in the 2024/25 campaign.
The former Swiss youth international adds versatility, pace and precision to the Pirates’ front-line, with his eight goal contributions amassing to almost 50% of the 18 league goals scored by the club this season.
Last time the two sides met:
The Bees put four past the Gas in the reverse fixture a few weeks ago, when Darrell Clarke was in the dugout for the opposition.
Goals from Adam Senior, Nnamdi Ofoborh, Mark Shelton and Callum Stead saw Barnet record their most comfortable win of the season so far.
COYB