THE BEES ARE STILL BUZZING!
CALLUM REYNOLDS believes the support of the Barnet squad towards interim boss Darren Currie is showing in their performances – and together they can launch a late play-off push.
Reynolds captained the Bees to, arguably, their most famous cup victory of all time when they toppled Championship high-fliers Sheffield United in the third round on Sunday.
For caretaker Currie, it proved the perfect introduction to life in management as he masterminded the biggest FA Cup shock of the season at the club where his family name in enshrined, thanks to uncle and Blades legend Tony.
Currie, the former Wycombe Wanderers, Barnet and Ipswich midfielder, took over temporary charge at The Hive just after Christmas when legendary boss John Still stepped down after 42 years in management to move upstairs.
He was Still’s first-choice as successor and did his chances of landing the job full-time no harm at all by orchestrating Sunday’s 1-0 victory, courtesy of Shaq Coulthirst’s 21st-minute penalty.
Victory ultimately earned the National League club a fourth round home tie with Brentford in a battle of the London Bees on Monday January 28, but first Reynolds insists his side must find some consistency in their league form to ensure that Currie remains in charge for the season run-in.
Platform
“It was an unreal occasion, we’re still buzzing days later,” said Reynolds, the former Aldershot Town and Boreham Wood skipper.
“At the same time though, on reflection, it’s a bit frustrating because that’s what we know what we can do. Our performances and results haven’t been consistent enough and the league table shows that. It’s up to us now to push on and use that result as a platform because it’s not too late.
“We had about ten injuries earlier in the season, myself included, but now we’ve got a few players coming back and have enough quality in the squad to achieve something in the league or in the FA Trophy.
“Personally, I was gutted when John [Still] stood down. I missed the first few months of the season and was just finding my feet under him.
“Darren, though, has always been there with us and that has made the transition easier. I’m not quite sure what the situation is with him getting the job full-time, I think they are in discussions, but the performances have been good, spirit and confidence is high, and the boys are right behind him and will support him all the way.” Reynolds admits it was Barnet’s spirit and togetherness which helped them topple Chris Wilder’s high-flying Blades on Sunday, but it was the sight of the Sheffield United teamsheet which first got them believing that a shock could be on the cards. Wilder made no fewer than ten changes from the side which had
“CONFIDENCE AND THE IS HIGH BOYS ARE RIGHT WE BEHIND DARREN, HIM WILL SUPPORT ALL THE WAY” Barnet captain – Callum Reynolds
won three Championship matches on the bounce, but with record scorer Billy Sharp on the bench, Reynolds knew it was an afternoon that was never going to go without the odd scare.
Cohesion
“Looking at their line-up beforehand certainly gave us a boost,” the centre-back added. “Yes, they are a still a team of Championship quality players but when you don’t play together regularly you lack the kind of cohesion that we knew we had.
“We started the game very confifrustrated dently and had a goal disallowed before we scored which, in a funny way, settled us a bit.
“The boys were outstanding and I thought we were comfortable, but I must admit when I saw Billy Sharp warming up, I looked up at the clock and it read 65 minutes. I thought ‘Jesus, we’ll have to do well to see this through’.
“But actually, although they pressed us quite hard in the latter stages, we defended really well and them. “I rallied round the boys with about 20 minutes to go and with only a few minutes left we could sense that we could actually go on and win the game. Cousy [goalkeeper Mark Cousins] only really had one save to make and that was very late on. “When the final whistle went it was just almighty relief. The feeling was unreal and it was great to celebrate with the fans that had made the trip up. It was a very special day.”