The Bees will be on the hunt to stretch their six-game unbeaten run to seven when they travel to Eastleigh on Tuesday night.
Darren Currie’s men go into tomorrow’s game off the back of a goalless draw at home to table toppers Leyton Orient on Saturday.
Last Meeting:
Eastleigh came out on top in our last meeting with the Spitfires back in August. Michael Green let rip from distance, nestling the top corner with 20 minutes on the clock. Paul McCallum then extended their advantage just past the hour mark when heading in a free-kick at the far post. Charlee Adams did give the hosts something to smile about late on though with a thunderbolt effort, marking his first goal for the club.
Manager: Ben Strevens
Ben Strevens was appointed Eastleigh boss back in November after a short spell as interim boss following the departure of Andy Hessenthaler.
The former striker is no stranger to Barnet having made a name for himself at Underhill, featuring over 200 times in a seven-year spell at the club. He was also part of the side who clinched promotion to League Two in 2005. During his time with the Bees, he was sent out on loan to Wingate & Finchley, Slough Town and St Albans City respectively.
He then went on to play for Crawley Town before signing for Dagenham & Redbridge in 2006 where he would go on to clinch promotion to England’s fourth division again. He made over 100 appearances for the Daggers before joining Brentford in 2010. It was at his next club Wycombe Wanderers where he would clinch his biggest career achievement, promotion to League One. However, after suffering relegation with the Chairboys the following season, he returned to Dagenham. Following a short spell with his former club, he signed for Eastleigh where he went on to achieve promotion from the Conference South in his first season. During his first spell at the club, he occupied a player-assistant manager role at the back end of the 2015-16 season. He left for Whitehawk in 2016 though but it wasn’t long before he was back at the Spitfires where he ended up making 22 more appearances before taking up an assistant manager role. He hung up his boots earlier this season to succeed Hessenthaler in the hot seat.
One to Watch: Mark Yeates
Winger Mark Yeates is the one to watch after accumulating an impressive total of 25 assists this campaign and he’ll be eager to add to that tally tomorrow.
The 34-year-old has bundles of experience under his belt too including three Premier League appearances whilst at Tottenham Hotspur.
Before joining Eastleigh in 2017, Yeates had never tasted football outside England’s top four divisions and has used that to his advantage since arriving at Silverlake.
Recent League Form:
Eastleigh, who occupy the final play-off spot in seventh, have won three times in their last five league games.
They fell to a 1-0 home defeat at the hands of Halifax Town but quickly picked themselves up when travelling to Chesterfield, winning 3-2. They clinched their seventh win in eight games three days later when beating Maidstone United 2-0 at the Silverlake Stadium. However, they tasted defeat again in their next game, losing 1-0 at home to Barrow. They go into tomorrow’s encounter off the back of a victory though having beaten Hartlepool United 3-2 at the weekend.
The Spitfires have also bagged 52 goals this season, conceding 48 and have won nine of their 20 games at the Silverlake Stadium this season.
Last 5 league games: LWWLW
Connections:
Alongside manager Strevens, goalkeeper Ross Flitney is another former Bee. After signing from Fulham in 2005, the 34-year-old went on to make over 50 appearances for the club in a two-year spell before departing for Grays Athletic. Flitney is currently occupying a player/goalkeeping coach role at Eastleigh after returning to the club last year.
