Barnet Football Club

BARNET FOOTBALL CLUB

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Match Preview | Chesterfield (h)

Last Time We Met:

Despite going in front, the Bees finished on the receiving end of a 2-1 score-line last time we faced Chesterfield.

Barnet got off to the perfect start when Ryan Watson picked out John Akinde in the box who smashed his effort into the bottom left corner after 10 minutes.

The Bees did manage to take their lead into half-time and even past the hour mark but when Charlie Clough looped the ball into his own net on 66 minutes, the scores were level.

With both sides searching for the winner, it was the hosts who claimed maximum points after Robbie Weir slotted past Jamie Stephens deep into stoppage time.

Manager:

Chesterfield are yet to appoint a permanent manager since the departure of Jack Lester last month. However, Spireits captain Ian Evatt has been occupying the dug-out on a caretaker basis ever since.

The defender has played over 250 times in two spells at Chesterfield and his current role proves to be his first stab at a managerial position.

Evatt also went on to be club captain and even picked up the Player of the Season award after the 2003-04 season. He also ended the final season of his first stint claiming the SIFA Player of the Season Award whilst just missing out on the CFSS Player of the Season Award.

After eight years away from the Proact Stadium, playing for Queens Park Rangers and Blackpool in that time, Evatt returned to the club in 2013.

He has featured 21 times for Chesterfield this season before taking charge of the club. Since his change of role, Evatt has overseen one defeat and one win against Wycombe Wanderers and Newport respectively.

Dangerman:

Kristian Dennis sits at the peak of Chesterfield’s top scorers for the second season running this campaign after bagging 20 goals for the Spireits in all competitions. With his impressive goal tally, there’s no surprise the Chesterfield number nine is the one to watch on Saturday.

The 28-year-old began his career at Macclesfield Town and after two loan spells at Ashton United and Woodley Sports, Dennis joined the latter on a permanent deal.

He then moved onto Mossley in the same year before stints at Curzon Ashton and Stockport County where he was regularly occupying the score-sheets.

Dennis rejoined Macclesfield for the 2015-16 season, scoring 29 goals in 45 appearances before arriving at Chesterfield in the summer of 2016.

In just two years at the Proact Stadium, the forward already has over 50 goals to his name and his fire power could pose Barnet all sorts of problems at the weekend.

After accumulating 83 shots, 54 on target, in the league this season, the Bees back-line will have to be on high alert to prevent Dennis from posing an attacking threat.

Connections:

Richard Brindley could come up against his former side this weekend after spending the back end of the 2012-13 season as a Chesterfield player. The Bees full-back joined the Spireites from Chelmsford City in January 2013 but the deal wasn’t extended beyond that season and he left for Rotherham United. Brindley featured over 12 times for Chesterfield during his time there.

Last Time Out:

Chesterfield played their final home match in the EFL for at least another year on Tuesday when they welcomed Newport County.

Despite already failing to maintain their league status, the Spireits managed to bow out on a high, claiming a 1-0 win over the Exiles.

With 20 minutes remaining, Louis Dodd’s cross was headed home by Kristian Dennis to claim his 19th league goal of the season.

Despite the victory, Chesterfield stay and will finish bottom whilst Newport maintained their spot in 11th.

Ticket Details:

Tickets are available online or in person. There are no telephone sales expect for Disabled tickets.

CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS!

Current availability:
North Stand – Availability
West Stand – Very Limited Availability
South Terrace – SOLD OUT
East Family Stand – SOLD OUT

The stadium will open from 12:30 on Saturday along with Legends Bar & Bar 66. Pecking Order will be open from 11am.

Keep up with the game:

Full match commentary from every game is available on iFollow. If you live outside the UK & Ireland, you can watch a live video stream from the game on iFollow.

You can also get live match updates on Twitter throughout the afternoon. We are also on Facebook and will go behind the scenes on our Instagram.