Why do Barnet continue to struggle against sides in the bottom half of the League Two table?

With 11 matches remaining and games against relegation rivals to come it is a question that Edgar Davids will need to find an answer to quickly.

The Bees have consistently failed to take points off the sides around them in the table this season and a disappointing performance saw them beaten 2-1 at Plymouth Argyle.

Barnet were poor throughout but had taken a surprise lead when Jake Hyde put the Bees ahead.

The visitors didn’t build on their advantage though and a fine strike from Conor Hourihane levelled the match at the interval.

Four minutes after the restart Plymouth went ahead as Ronan Murray fired in and they saw out the game fairly comfortably.

Davids made one change to his side with Andy Yiadom restored to the starting XI in place of Mauro Vilhete.

Barnet began the contest lethargically. The Bees were unable to keep the ball and Argyle had a couple of early shots saved by Graham Stack.

Hyde was left isolated up front on his own and the Barnet midfield were pressed well by the Pilgrims’ defence.

However, in the 22 minute the Bees went ahead. The ball was moved quickly through midfield and Dani Lopez freed Elliot Johnson down the left.

He crossed into the box and Hyde managed to nip ahead of Guy Branston and poke the ball past Jake Cole in the Plymouth goal.

Despite going ahead, Barnet continued to struggle. They couldn’t build attacks and the hosts’ controlled possession.

Plymouth hadn’t really forced Stack into a difficult stop throughout the opening half hour and the Bees goalkeeper could do nothing about the equaliser.

Neat passing on the edge of the box found Hourihane in space and he curled his shot into the corner of Stack’s net.

The two sides went in level at the interval and after their poor first half display, Davids decided to introduce Luke Gambin at the break in place of Hyde.

The travelling 151 Barnet fans would have expected their side to improve but the Bees fell behind four minutes after the restart.

After a Reuben Reid shot was blocked, the ball dropped to Andres Gurrieri who scuffed his effort into the path of Murray.

His initial strike was stopped by Johnson but he smashed the rebound past Stack.

Davids reacted by bringing Curtis Weston on in place of Clovis Kamdjo. The substitute immediately forced a save from Cole.

The Plymouth defence dropped a little deeper after going ahead and they dealt well with the sporadic Barnet attacks.

With the Bees pushing men forward, the Pilgrims relied on the counter attack but their final pass meant Stack remained largely untested.

The final Barnet change saw Iffy Allen replace Andy Yiadom. Soon after his introduction the youngster had a great chance to level the game.

Lopez curled a cross to the back post and Allen had escaped his marker well but his close range shot was well saved by Cole.

In the final minutes Lopez headed a corner wide but the Bees failed to build any momentum and the Pilgrims looked comfortable.

They came close to adding a third goal as Gozie Ugwu had a shot well blocked by David Stephens.

Argyle kept the ball well in the dying seconds and deservedly clinched all three points to move off the bottom of the division.

Barnet will need to improve and return to Underhill next Saturday as they host Morecambe.

Plymouth Argyle: Cole; Blanchard, Branston, Charles, Bhasera; Bantom, Cox (Young 81), Hourihane, Gurrieri (Cowen-Hall 85); Reid (Ugwu 85), Murray.

Plymouth Argyle substitutes: Cowan-Hall, Young, Chadwick, Chenoweth, Wotton, Ugwu, Richards.

Barnet: Stack; Fuller, Stephens, N'Gala, Johnson; Kamdjo (Weston 54), Byrne, Davids; Yiadom (Allen 76), Lopez; Hyde (Gambin 45).

Barnet substitutes: Brown, Gambin, Weston, Allen, N'Toko, Barnes, Vose.

Attendance: 8,210 (151)