FIXTURE DETAILS:
Barnet FC vs Notts County FC
Saturday 8th May, 15:00 KO
The Hive London
Vanarama National League
THE MAGPIES
League Position: 8th (P36, W16, D9, L11)
Last Fixture: Notts County 3-2 Sutton United (Tuesday, May 4th)
Manager: Ian Burchnall
Top Scorer: Kyle Wooton (13 league goals)
It’s been a strange season for the Magpies as they look to bounce back from Wembley heartbreak after losing the play-off final in the last campaign at the hands of Harrogate Town. Notts have been strong for the vast majority of the campaign but failed to pull away or cement a serious title challenge which saw the departure of Head Coach Neal Ardley in April following a defeat to fellow play-off hopefuls Wrexham, the former Notts boss left the Club in fourth place. Ardley was swiftly replaced by former Ostersunds manager Ian Burchnall, who achieved great things during his time in Scandanavia and will be looking to bring success to Meadow Lane. Burchnall has endured a tricky start to life in The National League, firstly crashing out of the FA Trophy at the hands of Hornchurch before overseeing a run of inconsistent form that has the Pies just outside the play-off positions ahead of the trip to The Hive.
However, things may well be looking up for the Magpies after a dramatic injury-time penalty from Rueben Rodrigues saw Burchnall’s side snatch all three points from automatic promotion hopefuls Sutton United. The Pies had led the game on two occasions before being pegged back but that late goal ensured that they kept the pressure on the top 7. Burchnall will be hoping his side have turned a corner and can make sure they build momentum and ensure they are in the play-off spaces at the end of the month. Notts are a side that is littered with talented players and on their day they are one of, if not the strongest teams in the division. The loss of starman Cal Roberts has been a blow to the Bees next opponents, but with the likes of Kyle Wooton, Rueben Rodrigues and Enzio Boldewijn bolstering the Notts attack, Simon Bassey knows his team are in for a tough match.
THE BEES
After a disappointing defeat to Dagenham and Redbridge in our last home game, Simon Bassey’s side bounced back with a commanding victory over Weymouth on Bank Holiday Monday. The visit of Notts County will provide a different test for the Bees, but they’ll head into the game with plenty of confidence after a recent good run of results. The Bees were disappointed with their home performance last time at The Hive when local rivals Daggers comprehensively dominated proceedings on their way to a 2-0 win, Bassey will be expectant to make it a tough task for Burchnall’s Notts County side. With Tomi Adeloye in decent form and the Bees looking more confident in recent weeks it looks set to be an entertaining match on #LiveFromTheHive.
LAST TIME WE MET:
It was a six-goal thriller the last time we took on Notts County as JJ Hooper netted twice in a 4-2 defeat.
WHERE TO FOLLOW THE ACTION:
You can tune into all of the action from The Hive London with Live From The Hive. Don’t miss our pre-match show at 14:30 which features an exclusive interview with young goalkeeper James Callan.
