Barnet manager Dean Brennan insisted that his side fully deserved their 3-1 win over MK Dons after ending the hosts’ long unbeaten run.
The Bees were stung by Joe Mellish’s early opener before Danny Collinge restored parity with an excellent header on the stroke of half-time.
January signing Kabongo Tshimanga’s deflected strike found the back of the Dons’ net early in the second half before Idris Kanu wrapped up the points in the 57th minute.
Barnet goalkeeper Cieran Slicker rose to the challenge of saving Rushian Hepburn-Murphy’s penalty as the hosts suffered their first League Two defeat since New Year’s Day.
Brennan felt that his team were worthy winners on the day, telling Barnet FC TV: “I think we’ve played the majority of our games like that. We were clinical today, especially after the start we had.
“Slicks made an error (for the MK Dons goal), but it shows the character he’s got to save the penalty. It should have never been a penalty in my mind. I thought the officials gave them (MK Dons) everything and gave us nothing, so we were up against that as well today.
“I thought the character we showed, the level of performance and the change of system showed a tremendous performance by the team. It was a really good performance.”
Brennan, clearly frustrated by the decision to award MK Dons a dubious penalty in the second half, was keen to point out how well he felt his side had begun the match.
“I thought we started brighter. I don’t think they had a corner in the first half. I thought we were brave, and most teams would crumble after that (conceding an early goal), but we never did. We kept going; we’re a small football club with a big heart, and the players showed a lot of courage today,” said the Barnet boss.
“We played on the front foot, and it was a really positive performance. It’s great for Idris (Kanu) to score. It was an easy one for him. I’m delighted for Danny Collinge too, as he was released here as a player. Kabi Tshimanga was released here too, and he scored as well, so it’s a nice little one for them.”
Collinge’s deft header in first-half stoppage time levelled the scores after Ryan Glover had missed a golden opportunity to equalise.
And Brennan made his feelings clear on how important it is for his team to take their chances when they present themselves if Barnet are to have any chance of battling for a play-off place this season.
“I think we were all frustrated (by Glover’s miss). We have to score those opportunities,” said Brennan. “I spoke to him at half-time. We have to score on those opportunities, and that’s what has caused us not to be in an automatic race for the play-offs.
“Our clinicalness in the second half and the goal from Danny, which we worked on in training, were perfect, really. If we can keep to that level at the top end of the pitch and in the box, we’ll do okay.”
Share