Barnet had to settle for a solitary point at Gresty Road after they had deservedly enjoyed a 2-1 advantage at half-time. Crewe came back strongly in the second period, but it was galling that an away victory that was there for the taking was allowed to slip away.

Ian Hendon chose an adventurous 4-3-3 line-up which featured a midfield of Mark Hughes, Micah Hyde and Dave Livermore. Further forward John O'Flynn was the central striker, aided and abetted by Albert Adomah and Albert Jarrett.

Hyde got an early shot away from the edge of the box that was rewarded with a corner, a signal that the Bees were determined to make the opposition keeper have a busy afternoon.

He first half in particular Barnet were not prepared to allow Crewe to keep possession and pass by pass build up their attacks, the Bees getting important challenges in high up the pitch.

With just over ten minutes gone Livermore suffered a strain that meant that he was replaced by Nicky Deverdics, but fortunately this did not cause an alteration to the formation.

Before Deverdics could touch the ball Barnet were a goal down when Clayton Donaldson showed his pace and pulled away from a chasing pack of Barnet defenders before slotting home past Jake Cole, a goal that was against the balance of play.

It took Barnet just ten minutes to level the scores when O'Flynn from distance lashed the ball high into the net, a cracking goal and a deserved leveller.

Six minutes later the Bees took the lead. Hughes intelligently found Matt Lockwood on the edge of the box and his trademark low drive was in the net in an instant, deflection or not it was clearly the left-backs goal.

Barnet were deservedly ahead and the jeers of the home crowd at the whistle at the end of the first half indicated that the home side were some way behind the Bees in terms of performance and application.

The second half was slightly different, with a drive from the diminutive Shaun Miller ricocheting off the Barnet post nearly levelling the scores early on.

The Barnet defenders were making a number of well-timed if desperate tackles that halted many a Crewe advance and Cole was called upon to be alert to the danger posed by Donaldson and Miller in particular.

With only eight minutes remaining Hughes conceded a free-kick on the edge of the Barnet box and from the resulting well worked routine Donaldson found himself in space with the ball at his feet and the ex-Hibs striker again made no mistake.

In the dying moments Adomah twisted this way and that and nearly steered his effort in the corner of the net, but the home keeper finger tipped the ball away from danger.

A curate's egg of a performance then from Barnet, but surely the fact that the Bees can be disappointed at securing ONLY a point from an away fixture is indicative of progress of late.

The Bees host Accrington Stanley at Accrington this coming Saturday at Underhill.

David Bloomfield