Barnet extended their unbeaten run in League Two to nine games with a comeback victory against Tranmere Rovers at Prenton Park on Sunday. After falling behind in the first half, the visitors rallied in the second half to secure a 2-1 win, moving them up to second place in the division.
Tranmere took the lead in the 22nd minute when Will Vaulks fired a powerful 20-yard shot past Barnet goalkeeper Matthew Cox, following an effective build-up play from Charlie Whitaker. The hosts created additional chances before halftime, with Whitaker narrowly missing and Dylan Jones dragging an effort wide just before the break.
Barnet found their equalizer ten minutes into the second half. Following a save by Tranmere keeper Harrison Male from a Charlie Lakin strike, Kabongo Tshimanga was quickest to react and headed the ball in from close range. The Bees completed the turnaround in the 87th minute when Bobby Faulkner fouled Lakin in the penalty area. Tshimanga converted the resulting penalty to complete his brace and secure all three points for Barnet.
The match ended on a sour note for Tranmere as Joel Senior was shown a second yellow card during injury time for a harsh challenge on Romoney Chrlichow-Noble, reducing the home side to ten men.
Barnet manager Dean Brennan praised his team’s resilience and character after the game. “Results mean everything. This business is about winning,” he said. “Tranmere played well in the first half, but in the second half we were much better. We played on the front foot, and I think we deserved our victory. What epitomised us was our character, willingness, how we found a different way to win and our togetherness. That is so hard to create and we’ve got it, so long may it continue.”
Tranmere manager Darrell Clarke expressed frustration with his side’s second-half performance, which saw them lose control and concede two goals. “I’m really angry with the second half, we didn’t get going at all,” he stated. “We lost control of the game and we got overran. It’s disappointing after how we started, and I have to go away and analyse that half because it looked like we’d never played together. We kept giving the ball away, we didn’t look great defensively, and we were too deep. We looked overrun, and then we give away two really cheap goals.”
Clarke added that although his team created opportunities, they failed to capitalize on them. “We’re getting opportunities and we need to take them and get that second goal. We’re scoring worldies and missing the easier chances. So, there’s plenty of work to do.” This defeat marked Tranmere’s first home loss of the League Two season and ended their run of points gained after taking the lead.