The Bees are back in league action this weekend as they travel to Cressing Road to face bottom side Braintree Town on Saturday.

Darren Currie’s side go into the game in high spirits after they progressed to the third round of the Buildbase FA Trophy last weekend, beating Dorchester Town 2-1 at the Hive London. Shaq Coulthirst bagged his sixth goal of the season in all competitions on 50 minutes but Ben Seymour pulled it back level soon after. However, with just under 10 minutes remaining, Craig Robson netted the winner as the Bees remain unbeaten in four games.

Last Meeting:

The last time these two sides met was in October as Barnet began their FA Cup run with 4-2 home victory against the Iron in the final round of qualifying.

David Tutonda netted first inside six minutes before Jack Taylor made it 2-0 moments later. Goals either side of half-time from Reece Grant and Lyle Delle-Verde meant Braintree found their way back to level pegging. However, goals from Elliott Johnson and Cheye Alexander late on put the tie out of reach.

Manager: Hakan Hayrettin

After a short spell as interim boss earlier in the season, Hakan Hayrettin was named manager on a permanent basis in November 2017.

The 48-year-old first took charge of Braintree in September 2016 but after facing relegation from the National League in his first season, he left the role.

He started his managerial career in 2003 at Waltham Forest before going on to take charge of Thurrock and Grays Athletic. Whilst at the latter, he guided them to a play-off semi-final finish in the Isthmian League Division One North in his debut season. However, the following campaign saw him go one better, achieving promotion to the Premier Division with a club-record 102 points.

He left the side in 2013 to join Luton Town as first team coach under John Still. He also led the U23’s side who went on to win the Football League final third U23’s title.

Hayrettin is no stranger to Barnet having played for us from 1989 to 1993 before leaving to sign for Wycombe Wanderers.

He went on to join sides such as Cambridge United, Doncaster and Peterborough but injuries forced him to drop down to part-time football.

One to Watch: Lyle Della-Verde

Winger Lyle Della-Verde joined Braintree in the summer after missing out on promotion to the National League with Dartford last season.

The 24-year-old, who started out in the youth set-up at Tottenham and Fulham, has EFL experience under his belt having played for Fleetwood and Crawley.

Since dropping back down to non-league in 2016, Della-Verde will be hoping to return to the Football League in the near future.

For now though, his attention remains firmly on tomorrow’s game where he will be looking to cause all sorts of problems down the flank for the Iron.

He’ll also be looking to add to his two-goal tally for the season and after finding the net in our FA Cup game in October, the Bees’ back-line will have to be on top of their game to prevent a repeat.

Recent League Form:

Tomorrow’s opposition, who sit bottom of the table on 19 points, have only clinched one win in their last five league games.

A 1-1 draw at home to Boreham Wood going in to the festive period was followed up by a 4-2 defeat away at Ebbsfleet on Boxing Day. However, they tasted victory for the first time since October three days later after beating Maidenhead United 1-0 at York Road thanks to a 68th minute Cameron James goal. Their high spirits were short-lived though as they began 2019 on the receiving end of a 4-0 thumping at home to Ebbsfleet United. However, they go into tomorrow’s match off the back of a 1-1 draw away at Halifax Town.

As for their home form, the Iron have only managed one win at Cressing Road this season, beating Dover 2-1 at the end of October.

Playing four more games than the Bees, they’ve also bagged 25 goals, one less than us. However, they’ve conceded the most goals in the league with 53.

Last 5 league games: DLWLD

Connections:

Simeon Akinola arrived at Barnet in 2017 after spending two years with Braintree. Making over 100 appearances for The Iron, the forward was also part of the Town side who reached the National League play-off semi-final in 2016. Akinola bagged over 20 goals for Braintree before making the switch to the Hive.

Another man who was part of that successful Braintree side of 2016 was summer singing Dan Sparkes. Signing from Histon in 2012, the midfielder spent over four years in Essex, making over 100 appearances before signing for Torquay in 2016.

After beginning the season with the Irons, Mohamed Bettamer swapped Essex for North London in November 2017. The front-man signed for Braintree in the summer after an impressive season with Staines Town and bagged six goals in 15 appearances before signing for the Bees.

As for Braintree, boss Hayrettin made over 80 appearances for Barnet between 1989 and 1993. During his time at the club, he was sent out on loan to Torquay United and Wycombe Wanderers respectively.

Justin Amaluzor joined Barnet at U18 level in 2015 before progressing to the senior side. He made over 25 appearances for the club and was sent out on loan on multiple occasions. However, he left the Bees for Braintree at the end of August.