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Barnet 1 Bury 2

Dave Lawrenson
25/ 9/2008

BURY fans have gone from being on cloud nine to being on cloud one million and nine!

For the Shakers’ dream start to the season took yet another turn for the better on Saturday as they came from behind to record their first ever win at Barnet and leap up to top spot in the League Two table for the first time in 11 years.

Bury’s transformation from perennial relegation battlers to the league’s top dogs is a remarkable story. And you have to take your hat off to manager Alan Knill, who is becoming as popular among Bury fans as Sir Alex Ferguson is among Manchester United supporters.

Knill’s straight talking is one of the many qualities that has endeared him to the Gigg Lane faithful and he was honest enough to admit that the Shakers were far from at their best on Saturday.

They looked shaky at the back, especially when Ryan Cresswell replaced ankle injury victim Efe Sodje at the centre of Bury’s defence at half-time, and they were lucky that winless Barnet fluffed two good chances when leading 1-0. But, for the umpteenth time this season, Bury emerged smelling of roses thanks to their immense fighting spirit.

They managed to hang on to Barnet’s coat tails in the second half and when you have strikers of the quality of Andy Bishop and Andy Morrell then you have always got a chance. Their performances weren’t anything to write home about but they both netted late on as the Shakers avenged last year’s 3-0 defeat at Barnet.

The Shakers have not lost in the league since that dreadful day in April. And Knill named an unchanged side for the sixth successive game on Saturday.

Bury had the better of the first half with Bishop twice firing wide and Brian Barry-Murphy twice testing Barnet keeper Lee Harrison after he had tipped a Morrell header just past a post.

But, with Adam Birchall and Kenny Gillet causing a lot of problems, Barnet were well on top early in the second half.

Albert Adomah lashed the home side into the lead on 49 minutes, punishing a poor headed clearance by Ben Futcher with a bottom corner finish from 18 yards out.

Cliff Akurang missed Barnet’s best chance to extend their lead when his bullet header went straight at keeper Wayne Brown.

Bishop showed Akurang how it is done by collecting an Elliott Bennett pass to fire a 75th minute angled shot into the bottom corner and bag his 50th goal for the club.

And Morrell completed the glorious turnaround seven minutes later, benefiting from a huge deflection off Barnet skipper Ismail Yakubu after turning well from a low Stephen Dawson cross.

Team: Brown, Scott, Futcher, Sodje (Cresswell 46), Buchanan, Dawson, Bennett, Barry-Murphy, Jones, Morrell, Bishop. Subs not used: Belford, Haslam, Baker, Racchi. Goals: Bishop (75mins), Morrell (82mins). Attendance: 1,995.