Game 45 - The Bees (H)
Team - Barnet FC
Date - 18/04/2026 14:00
Where - Meadow Lane

What would your starting line-up be? What will be the key areas for the Magpies to get a victory? What do you think the final score will be?

Have your say below, join in with the Pride of Nottingham match discussion.

The main thing I want to see on Saturday is desire.

This time last year we were letting every opponent get what they want, and we perfected that generosity in the play-offs.

Barnet need wins, draws aren't that much use to them...

I want autos as much as anybody, but if the game's difficult I'd be happy to see us stop them getting want they want. A bad-tempered draw would at least show we care and we won't be pushovers any more, continuing for anyone we face in the play-offs. Just don't end this season like the last one. If we fall short, let us go down kicking and screaming and fighting for every last ball.

Edited Thursday at 17:012 days by theAnticlough

I agree, and to that end I would suggest another crack at 4-4-2, at least for the first 60 minutes. Play Browne with Ness in the middle, Jones and Bennetts as attacking midfielders, and Dennis with Ndlovu up top. We need to scrap for points in each of our last 3 games, in order to gain a bit of confidence after last weekend, and we also need to develop some versatility and unpredictability to tackle the playoffs.

There was a lot wrong with last weekend’s performance, mostly defending set-pieces, but luckily Barent aren’t a big physical side and in theory shouldn't worry us in that way. But they are still a good side who have beaten Cambridge and MK Dons recently and with an outside chance of play-offs they’ll need the 3 points as much as we do… Should be a cracker, but we thought that last weekend!

I think Jatta is still missing, so purely for his goal threat I’d have Dennis starting. I wouldn’t be against him and Ndlovu upfront, but I would be against a midfield three of Palmer, Norburn and Iorpenda which I think would likely back them up…

Right now I’m all for the win-loss run continuing, just for this weekend anyway!

I believe the performance will be better, but I want to see the lads show that they are trying. This doesn't mean I don't think they are, but having watched the Cambridge United game and seeing us unable to really trouble them even though their keeper got sent off, resulting in them going down to 10 men. How vital that game was, we didn't give anywhere near as good of an account that we should have.

Barnet shouldn't be underestimated, but on paper it shouldn't be as difficult. There needs to be more urgancy to get the ball forward, and certainly more zonal awareness at the back.

James Belshaw can't be left exposed so easily, because these 3 remaining games could ease pressure off us if we handle them right and the results go our way. I agree that having 4 at the back would give us some stability. It could always switch during the game, as I also like the idea of two strikers. Now it is crucial we get the most out of what remains, and I just hope the results go our way. As per usual, and I keep saying this, it will go down to the very last game of the season.

Automatic promotion is still on the table. We need to win our last 3 and hope that is good enough. There's a decent chance that it might be enough. It's squeaky bum time.

It is very simple, play as we did last weekend and we are toast, play to our potential then get ready for promotion. 🙈🙉🙊 COYP ⚽️🥇

I think that last Saturday's match against Cambridge, demonstrated that possession is not the be all or end all when it comes to being successful in a football match.

If the players are not motivated to play their socks off to win this match then they shouldn't be playing in the black and white. It's as simple as that.

Hopefully, there will be a good crowd to cheer them over the line. The crowd can play a big part in doing that because it will be a very hard match against a side that is 2nd in the form league.

Performance does not really matter at this stage. What matters is going into the final run with some level of consistency, especially with the chance that even if we beat Barnet, we could still be sitting right on the edge of the playoffs.

Winning is what counts now, and these points could be the difference between automatic promotion and the playoffs. The match might feel tense, but I think Martin Paterson will have pushed the players hard after the last defeat. Winning in a scrappy way can help rebuild belief, and once that belief returns, performances often follow. Football is never simple with Notts County, but getting the result is what keeps the season alive.

Ironically, as bad as the defeat last week was, Cambridge are by no means home and dry. They know they can still be overtaken and the pressure is on. What we need to see from Notts is a will and desire to go and get three wins. If we do that even if it’s not enough for promotion, I think most fans will be happy with that and the Cambridge disaster will be forgotten. However, ending the season with a whimper, many will feel let down and expect big changes for next season. We know wins in football are not guaranteed no matter who you are, but the will and desire to try is the bare minimum. COYP! Let’s do this!

Today we remember this:-

Kick off 15:00 V Barnet. COYP.

Notts team to face Barnet.

Fantastic news on McDonald - welcome back to one of our best players this season.

JJ we expected, but still great to see him on the team sheet.

Dennis and Bennetts can consider themselves lucky - hoping for much better from them today

Disappointing so far.

We're the home team shooting for an auto spot - we're not supposed to look second best to Barnet. I suppose we're still missing 5 first choice players, but it tells

Bennetts is an absolute liability, cannot do a thing right

Oh dear Notts. This season, like last, is turning into a slow motion car crash. We might scrape into the play-offs because of other teams playing each other. But with zero expectation.

Hate to say it but at what point do we conclude the footballing side of the club is being badly run? Big crowds, good commercial set-up, transfer fees, data ... but 14 defeats and counting and zero success in the cups, all against pretty limited opposition.

So sick of losing crunch matches.

They get exactly what they want - we let that happen on our home ground yet again.

We haven't been able to rid ourselves of last season's Losers mentality

I'm so fed up of us failing at the crucial moment and having to watch other teams' fans celebrate instead.

We were scrappy, wasteful in possession and vulnerable at the back. "They wanted it more" is overused in football, but it certainly looked like Barnet did today. They weren't special, but they were a little bit sharper, a bit faster to claim loose balls, a bit more confident. Playoffs it is then. I've got zero expectations.

Looking at the table, it's agonisingly close. If we had drawn against Cambridge (and let's not forget we were playing ten men for most of that one) and lost today, we would be third now. The bar isn't that high yet somehow we're managing to miss it.

Seven defeats in the last 13 matches isn't going to get promotion. We may well clinch a playoff place due to the remaining fixtures affecting the top eight, but it just seems the same as last season.

When the team needed their best form during the last dozen games, it just looks like they haven't been able to cope with the extra pressure which has affected performances. And losing to ANOTHER physical, high intensity, hard working team is becoming a common occurrence unfortunately.

I think that ensuring that they win a playoff place has to be the priority now. A Cambridge win against Grimsby might be the best result for Notts. Grimsby remains a threat because they can catch us & their goal difference is almost equal to Notts's.

A win at Colchester will assure Notts of a playoff place provided that Cambridge beat Grimsby in midweek.

Top of League 2.

I feel that some of fan base is casting around for something to blame for the collapse in form just when it matters.

In all of that, Martin Paterson is in danger of getting off too lightly.

He's done well overall and I don't think he's in too much danger - but we shouldn't forget he's a 38 year-old rookie coach who has made mistakes.

How much has he taken on board input from the 'Technical Board'?

We don't know...but his stubbornness with Iorpenda is a case in point IMO. "Tom will score goals'' was his early refrain, but his 3 in 44 have only come from the few games he started deeper in Central Midfield. He sees the game more from there, is under less pressure, and benefits from coming from deep.

But instead of that, we have had the poor Gagliardi signing Norburn, who is the wrong partner for Palmer.

Macari has played lovely football this year, but he's taken every opportunity to drop or sub him, instead of building the confidence of one of our best footballers.

Bennetts shouldn't have been anywhere near the team today after his 3/10 last week. He was even worse today.

I think some fans give him the benefit of the doubt because he seems like a 'strong character' but I wonder how easy he is to work with. Is he collaborative and willing to take on board input from others?

I'm still excited about what we can achieve with him next season (and maybe still this one), but the Bros need to remember it was our DoF who gave us one the best season of attacking football we've ever seen plus a promotion. If MP can work with that - great. If not, let's find another Luke Williams.

I kind of feel like we’ve ended up in a situation where Iorpenda has become the go to attacking midfielder because none of the other players are really up to scratch. Luker is just back from a serious knee-injury, Hall has got worse as the season progressed and Grant sitting on the bench when we needed a goal tells a story...

I agree he should be playing alongside one of either Palmer or Norburn in CM. I don't think the Palmer and Norburn partnership works because they are too similar in terms of style. And playing them both also means we have no other genuine central midfielders on the bench. If we potentially want fresh legs for the last 30 minutes or so we have none!

The side just feels a tad lacking and unbalanced at the minute, and we've also had the situation where basically for a whole season we’ve had no natural right-footed wingback, that for me has been a massive hindrance.

Anyway as for today, it seems the pressure has got to the players, it was far from a confident performance or one where they were up for the challenge of catching Cambridge. The thought of the play-offs just fills me with dread, especially if we have to play Salford again.