The Hive

Thursday, 20 August 2015

Barnet 2-0 Northampton Town

Aerial shot of The Hive (www.barnetfc.com)

Programme - £3.00

Ratings

Overall Ground Quality : 6/10

Ease of getting there : 7/10

Atmosphere : 6/10

Programme : 9/10

View of Action : 6/10

Quality of the game : 7/10

The "football" feeling : 4/10

Chances of coming here for a random game : 1/10

Legroom : N/A

Surrounding area : 8/10

Overall : 54/100

Entrance to The Hive

The Hive from the entrance

East Stand

North Terrace

South Terrace

North Terrace

East Stand

West Stand

South Terrace

West Stand

The Jubilee Line behind the West Stand

Northampton Town players on the pitch before they warm up

Hands in pockets = A THREAT!

South Terrace

North Terrace

West Stand

North Terrace

East Stand

The floodlight, tunnel and benches in the East Stand

West Stand

North Terrace

East Stand

A passing train during play

West Stand

North Terrace

East Stand

Barnet 2-0 Northampton Town

Following Barnet’s return to the Football League and now at their new home, The Hive, meant that Adrian and I (Ross) started the 2015/16 season with only one ground to visit in order to complete our 92 once again. The visit of Northampton Town on a Tuesday night was the earliest opportunity for us to make our visit to the Bee’s Hive!

For me, this was already my fourth match of the season yet only my first match of the season in England having previously watched Celtic v Ross County and Hearts v St Johnstone in Scotland and Glenavon v Cliftonville in Northern Ireland.

Even though the journey to Barnet is fairly straight forward from Leicestershire, we both chose to take half day from work giving ourselves plenty of time to get into London.

We left Leicestershire at 1:30pm heading southbound on the M1. We encountered some roadworks on the M1 between Junctions 12 to 10 which didn’t affect us too much for time. We were on the M1 all the way to Junction 4 where we went onto the A41 briefly and towards the previously visited Morrisons Supermarket at Queensbury for dinner. Food was ordered at 4pm and we eating our dinner by 4:30pm!

Once we were fed and watered, we made the 1 mile journey to The Hive going up Turner Road leading us to Camrose Avenue where the ground is situated. We found car parking to be very easy being on a housing estate without any residential parking permits. We parked at the top of St Bride's Avenue close to Camrose Avenue which would be the road we later use to make our quick get away.

On our previous visit, we were given a frosty welcome when a steward refused permission to take photos outside the ground and I was told I had to be given permission by someone with that authority. I (Ross) was taken to somewhere in reception where I waited for 15 minutes for someone to even see me before I decided to walk out in anger. Adrian and I were hoping this wouldn’t be the case this time……..

We arrived at the ground with plenty of time before kick off where we were taking photos outside the ground watching the Northampton Town team bus arrive. We bought our programmes from the club shop when an announcement was made that the ground was now open.

With nothing better to do, we made our way to the turnstiles. When we arrived at the turnstiles, Adrian was asked by a steward to empty his pockets simply because he had his hands in his pockets! When Adrian asked why, the jobsworth steward responded with their maybe a pyrotechnic in his pockets. What a load of nonsense – so much so it was laughable! He will have a busy job during the winter when masses of Barnet supporters turn up with their hand in their pockets keeping themselves warm!

The Hive Stadium has a capacity of 5,634 (3,434 seated) situated in Canons Park in the London Borough of Harrow. Barnet chairman Anthony Kleanthous had sought to move the club from Underhill since the 1990s due to the poor facilities at the ground. Attempts to relocate either to Barnet Copthall or to the greenbelt site directly to the south of Underhill were both unsuccessful; with John Prescott over-ruling a move to Copthall in 2001 after planning permission was granted. Construction of the stadium, at the Prince Edward Playing Fields in Canons Park, began in 2003 as a new home for Wealdstone FC. In 2004, Wealdstone's investment partners in the project went into liquidation, bringing construction work at the site to a halt. Harrow London Borough Council put the site up for tender in 2006, and Barnet FC won the right to occupy the site as a result of this. Barnet FC moved into the stadium in summer 2013 due to disagreement with Barnet London Borough Council with regards to the lease of the land surrounding their home since 1907, Underhill, as well as the limited facilities at Underhill restricting the club's income. The awarding of the Barnet Copthall site to Saracens effectively ended Barnet FC's hopes of ever moving to the site accelerated the move to The Hive further. Barnet have been seeking to increase the capacity of their home stadium to accommodate more fans and generate more revenue along with the increase revenue from hospitality and other areas associated with the upgrading of sports facilities. The new stadium is largely demountable but there is no indication that the development will be moved elsewhere in future. On 15th July 2015 planning permission for a new 1,930 capacity north stand was approved, once built the capacity will be 6,480.

We witnessed history at The Hive on a mild August evening in 2015. This was the first win as a league club for Barnet at The Hive. Any previous wins in the professional pyramid had been at their former home, Underhill.
It was a game which got better as time went on.
In the first half, Northampton looked the more assured in possession but it was Barnet that created the two best chances, both falling to striker John Akinde.
Put through he was denied by an excellent Adam Smith save as the keeper spread himself and later in the half opted to square the ball when he should have put his foot through it, the opportunity going begging.
The visitor’s best endeavours resulted in a D'ath low cross missed by everyone.
In the second half, chances came and went, Northampton’s Lawson D’ath bravely heading towards goal but denied by Johnson on the line.
The game turned on a substitution made by Barnet boss Martin Allen. The introduction of young Luke Gambin certainly made the difference.
The youngster showed a willingness to get forward and was not afraid to run at the Cobblers defence. It was one such run that lead to the Barnet penalty.
He found Akinde with his pass and the lanky striker was denied a shot on goal by a late challenge by Jason Taylor in the penalty area deemed to be denying an obvious goal scoring opportunity by the referee and was consequently sent off.
The Barnet penalty was scored by Akinde sending the keeper the wrong way – 1-0.
Suddenly Barnet were in the driving seat a numerical advantage and in the lead as well.
Northampton made a couple of tactical substitutions and searched for an equaliser but found the Barnet defence in excellent form, denying space and protecting Graham Stack very well.
As often happens while the team trailing go for the leveller they inevitably leave a door open and this happened in the dying minutes.
A through ball into space, the keeper Smith came charging out of his goal failed to get there as the pacy John Akinde took the ball wide of him and fired into the empty net – 2-0.
This was a que for several hundred Cobblers fans to head for the exits and the journey north on the M1.
For Barnet last years conference champions, relief that they have secured their first league win and just about deserved.
With mad dog Martin Allen in charge you just feel they will have enough to keep out of the bottom two.

At the final whistle, we dashed out the ground making our way back up to Camrose Avenue back to the car. We drove down Camrose Avenue towards Edgware and onto the A41 leading to the M1.

The journey up to Luton was excellent until we hit roadworks with the motorway narrowing from 3 lanes to 1 lane causing a delay. We also encountered average speed cameras towards Catthorpe and at Leicester. We eventually got back at around 11:30pm.

Footnote by Adrian

I caused a security alert at the hive 18.8.15.

54 year old bloke minding his own business, is stopped by a numpty steward at the turnstile on suspicion of?...Well I had my hands in my jacket pocket, nothing unusual, indeed was not aware!

Our friend, fat mid late 50s in a high viz asks me what I have in my pockets.

Well beside my hands I was have some car keys and a mobile phone.

He is happy with that it seems, I have to ask what on earth he thought I might have.

He then claims I could be concealing something for example a flare!!

And it would be best not to approach the turnstiles with my hands in my pockets!

I give him a withering look which says everything, a younger numpty smiles!

Why oh why do these stewards, who obviously have never had any power in their lives continue to annoy the law abiding sports fan? Over zealous is not the word!

They have just vivid imagination they lose site of reality.

What are the chances of a 54 year old bloke smuggling a flare into an August evening League 2 fixture in sleepy North West London? Remote is a word that springs to mind.

Ross thought it very funny, the only flares I have had were trousers in the 1970s.

So the moral of the story is, when visiting big London clubs never let your hands go near your pockets. Back to normal on Saturday when I go and see Leicester City take on Tottenham Hotspur, I will have my hands in my pockets in the Premier League!