Last updated at 19:23, Monday, 02 March 2009

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BLUE SQUARE PREMIER RESULT: BARROW AFC 0 NORTHWICH VICTORIA 0

BY LEE PROCTER

THERE was an uneasy feeling of déjà vu around Holker Street on Saturday as Barrow, for the third home league game running, took only a point against a side, like themselves, struggling at the wrong end of the table.
As had happened in the basement battles against Salisbury City (0-0) and Grays Athletic (1-1), the Bluebirds were unable to claim three much-needed points when fellow strugglers Northwich Victoria visited town.
Barrow’s efforts to dispose of a Northwich side all but nailed-on for relegation and with the worst defensive away record in the league were again not helped by a lack of discipline.
Just as they had done a month ago when sharing a goalless draw with Salisbury, the home side were reduced to 10 men relatively early in the piece.
On that occasion it was Mark Boyd who was shown a straight red card for kicking the ball at a stricken opponent, this time it was Steve McNulty, on the hour-mark, for appearing to swing an arm into the face of Vics striker Damien Reeves.
With the Barrow defender taking an early bath for the second time in six weeks, joint-managers Dave Bayliss and Darren Sheridan sacrificed striker Nick Rogan for substitute defender Marcus Holness.
What’s frustrating is that the 10 men went on to batter a drained Northwich side in the remainder of the game. Were the Bluebirds still fielding a full complement of players during the closing stages then surely they’d have snatched what would have been only a second league victory in four months.
As well as that, Barrow also appear devoid of any luck at present. Twice again on Saturday they hit the crossbar, first through a 55th minute close-range Matt Henney effort then, deep into injury time, from a 35-yard Mark Boyd free-kick cracker. Both shots smashed against almost the exact same bit of woodwork that Luke Steele hit during the draw with Grays seven days earlier.
With only one goal scored in the last seven-and-a-half hours of league action and three in total – all courtesy of Jason Walker – in eight Blue Square Premier clashes since the turn of the year, the Bluebirds are in need of better fortunes in front of goal.
Top scorer Walker, as his goal tally of 17 proves, is always going to a threat in and around the box, but what he needs is a strike partner and a midfield to burden the load.
Hopes are high that recent recruit Steele can be the man to forge a partnership with Walker and together fire Barrow to safety.
Unfortunately, the experienced Steele couldn’t play on Saturday due to a verbal agreement made between the player and his parent club Northwich before his loan move to Holker Street.
The 35-year-old was replaced in attack by Rogan in one of four changes to the team beaten by two late goals at high-flying Histon in midweek.
The other changes saw new loan signing Peter Winn, from Scunthorpe United, make his debut on the left wing, McNulty replace Holness, who had received physio during the week for a leg injury, and Boyd preferred to Andy Bond in the middle of midfield alongside the evergreen Sheridan.
Financially-troubled Northwich – whose players have not been paid for around three months – were the better team in an edgy, scrappy and generally dire first half played on a bobbly surface.
The best chance of the opening 45 minutes fell to striker Jonny Allan, who spun and fired a shot just over the bar on the half-hour mark.
Barrow looked short on confidence and pumped a lot of long balls forward, many of which were headed away by giant centre-half Mat Bailey, who once had a loan spell at AFC as a striker.
The Bluebirds rarely played the ball through midfield and fans on the Popular Side grew restless as their team continued to gift possession away.
Northwich’s main threat came via the long throws of skipper Simon Grand, though with McNulty and Paul Jones dominating aerially the home side were able to prevent any efforts directly on goal.
Barrow were at their best down the right-hand side with winger Matt Henney seeing a lot of the ball. His 38th minute run and cross was met by the head of Walker, whose effort was deflected over the bar.
Just before half-time a long McNulty punt was knocked down by Rogan for Winn, wearing the number 19 shirt previously the property of namesake Ashley, who fired high and wide from 18 yards.
There was still time for Allan to send an overhead kick wide and Joel Byrom to smash a shot high over the top before referee Paul Curry put everyone out of their misery and blew up for half-time.
Barrow, with the wind now at their backs, were much improved in the second half. Just 10 minutes after the re-start Henney met a Winn cross at the near post and was unlucky to see his right-footed effort come back off the bar. The build up involving Rogan and Winn was excellent – the home team’s best move of the match.
As Barrow began to take control of the game McNulty was given his marching orders. The incident that led to his dismissal happened while the ball was out of play, with Grand preparing to launch yet another one of his long-throws into the home team’s crowded box at the Crossbar end of the ground
As players tussled for space, Reeves fell to the floor inside the six-yard box. The assistant on the far side put his flag high into the air but was not consulted by referee Curry, who went straight over to McNulty and sent him off.
The AFC defender had earlier been booked in the 41st minute for a foul, but the 60th minute incident earned him a straight red.
It is the second time since the turn of the year that McNulty has been sent off. He was also dismissed during the 3-0 defeat at Stevenage Borough on January 13. Saturday was his first start since that game.
It was Barrow’s fifth red card of the season, and the fourth since the dawning of 2009.
Again being reduced to 10 men seemed to galvanise Barrow, who pushed on in search of a winner.
Their best two chances were, however, saved for the very end, in the four minutes of injury time. First, Winn, who had a loan spell at Northwich earlier this season, let rip with a cracking 16-yard strike which Vics keeper Ryan Clarke did very well to turn over the bar. Then, a minute later, Boyd’s free-kick crashed against the woodwork.
The draw – it’s now seven meetings and over a decade since AFC beat Vics – means the Bluebirds remain in the relegation zone on goal difference.
Barrow now have 14 games left to get themselves out of the bottom-four and secure their status in non-league football’s top division for a second season.
Next up is lower-league AFC Telford United in the rearranged semi-final of the Setanta Shield on Tuesday night followed by another crunch relegation six-pointer at Woking next Saturday.

Barrow: A Martin, N Kerr, C Logan, P Jones, S McNulty, M Henney, D Sheridan, M Boyd, J Walker (P Tait 85), N Rogan (M Holness 62), P Winn.
Subs: A Bond, P Brown, B McGill.
Booked: McNulty (41).
Sent off: McNulty (60).

Northwich: R Clarke, M Aspin, R Brown, M Bailey, S Grand, L Elam (A Burns 78), J Byrom, M Crowell, P Barratt (J Mullen 75), D Reeves, J Allan.
Subs: L Horrocks, J Stevens, L Richards.
Booked; Byrom (67), Aspin (76), Allan (90).

Attendance: 1,437.

Evening Mail man-of-the-match: Peter Winn. Great first touch and is a sweet striker of the ball too. Good potential.

Saturday's Blue Square Premier results: Altrincham 1 Stevenage 2, Barrow 0 Northwich 0, Cambridge 1 Crawley 1, Forest Green 1 Grays Athletic 1, Kidderminster 2 Eastbourne 0, Lewes 0 Histon 3, Oxford 0 Torquay 2, Rushden and Diamonds 0 Mansfield 1, Woking 0 Burton 0, Wrexham 1 Salisbury 1, York 2 Weymouth 0.

See tonight's Evening Mail (Monday) for more match stats, player ratings, photos and reaction.

First published at 19:06, Saturday, 28 February 2009
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk