Barnet scored twice in the final ten minutes after being forced down to ten men to snatch a 2-2 draw at high-flying Accrington Stanley.

With 11 minutes remaining substitute Luke Gambin pulled one back and a John Akinde header in the 90th minute secured a point for Barnet.

The Bees, trailing to strikes either side of half time from Billy Kee and Matt Crooks, had been reduced to ten men following an injury to Chris Hackett with all three substitutions already having been made.

Despite their 1-0 victory over Portsmouth at the Hive on Tuesday night Barnet boss Martin Allen made four changes to his starting line-up.

Sam Togwell, Hackett, Alie Sesay and Fumnaya Shomotun replaced Curtis Weston, Mark Randall, Bondz N’Gala and Matt Stevens.

Skipper Andy Yiadom started in the unfamiliar left-back position and Shomotun was given his full league debut and the task of playing just behind the main striker in a 4-4-1-1 formation.

Sam Muggleton moved forward to play on the left-hand side of midfield.

The first half was an even affair with both sides struggling to create genuine goalscoring opportunities.

Akinde did get the ball in the Stanley net but he was adjudged to have been in an offside position and Jamie Stephens had kept out a curled effort from distance by Accrington’s Rommy Boco.

At half time Randall replaced Shomotun who had found it difficult to make an impact and the substitute tried his luck with a shot from the kick-off but the home side’s keeper Ross Etheridge was alert to any danger.

Stanley would then take the lead after 12 minutes of the second period.

Kee was the first to react to a centre from the right by Piero Mingoia as he expertly steered the ball low into the corner of the net.

The home side then set about extending their lead and began to control proceedings with Rangers-bound forward Matt Crooks becoming increasingly influential.

On the hour mark Barnet made a double substitution with Stevens and Gambin joining the fray at the expense of Muggleton and Tom Champion as the Bees adopted a more attacking 4-4-2 formation.

With just over a quarter of an hour remaining the home side looked to have wrapped up the points when, after Barnet had failed to clear the ball, Crooks steadied himself before stroking the ball past Stephens to give Stanley a two-goal advantage.

The situation then worsened further for Barnet when Hackett was subject to an over-zealous challenge by Matty Pearson, forcing the player from the field of play unable to continue.

The home side suffered a lapse of concentration which enabled the determined men of Barnet to stage a comeback.

Five minutes after Accrington’s second, forceful play down the right by Akinde saw the forward pick out a run into the six-yard box by Gambin to give the Bees more than a glimmer of hope.

Barnet were throwing men forward in a search for an equaliser and their reward came in the dying moments when Randall’s well-struck free-kick was met by the head of Akinde for his 12th league goal of the season.

The Barnet players and their hardy band of supporters were delighted and the Bees were relatively untroubled during the five minutes of time added on to claim a much deserved point.

At the final whistle many of the Stanley players, by contrast, were on their knees with their heads in their hands.

Accrington Stanley: Etheridge; Halliday, Davies, Hughes, Pearson; Crooks, Conneeley; Mingoia, Boco, Mingoia; Kee.

Subs: Mooney (GK), Proctor, Wakefield, McCartan, Brown, Carver, Buxton.

Barnet: Stephens; Pearson, Sesay, Nelson, Yiadom (c); Hackett, Champion (Stevens 60), Togwell, Muggleton (Gambin 61); Shomotun (Randall HT); Akinde.

Subs: McKenzie-Lyle (GK),N'Gala, Weston, Kyei.

Referee: Tony Harrington Attendance: 1,416 (95 travelling supporters)