Notts County vs Barnet
22 July 1700hrs
Football – England – National League
Pick Barnet
Bookmaker Boylesports
Odds: 2/1 odds taken 1800 GMT, Friday 24 July
The National League playoffs take place on Saturday in a slightly different format as Barnet travel to Notts County in a one-off semi-final to go within one game of a return to the Football League.
Table of Contents
- 1 Notts County Preview – Can County see off Barnet and give themselves a chance of an immediate return to League Two?
- 2 Barnet Preview – Are Barnet set to take full advantage of their fortune and reach next weekend’s final?
- 3 Notts County vs Barnet Betting Advice
- 4 The best betting odds for Notts County vs Barnet
Notts County Preview – Can County see off Barnet and give themselves a chance of an immediate return to League Two?
There was huge disappointment when Notts County were relegated from the EFL last season – the first time in their history that they suffered such a fate. Neil Ardley remained in charge and he has given the club a chance to return to the Football League at the first time of asking. County finished in third place of the National Football League after it was halted. That means this will be their first game since March.
Ardley would have still held out some hope his team could have caught Barrow but with a seven point deficit and having played a game more, a playoff finish is probably the most they could have hoped for.
County were pretty dominant at home in what is a supremely competitive league. In their 20 league games at Meadow Lane they lost only two and were victorious in 10 games. They are unbeaten at home this calendar year with their last defeat coming back in November. Ardley’s men have since won six and drawn four.
The experienced Kyle Wootton and Kristian Dennis have led the line well for County scoring 25 goals, ably backed up by another older head in Wes Thomas who has chipped in with 10 of his own.
Barnet Preview – Are Barnet set to take full advantage of their fortune and reach next weekend’s final?
There’s no doubt that the luckiest of teams contesting the playoffs is Barnet who benefited from the decision to end the season via a method of average points per game. That conclusion seen them finish in seventh and take the final playoff berth – much to the dismay of teams who were above them in the table at the time. The challenge for Barnet now is to take full advantage and look to return to league football for the first time since 2018.
Darren Currie’s men have certainly started the playoffs in strong fashion with a 2-0 win against Yeovil last week to get to this match.
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That was a big victory in it’s own right as Yeovil were fourth at the end of the regular season and fancied to face Notts County in the semi-final. Currie and his players will no doubt relish the tag of underdogs and use that to their advantage.
The win over Yeovil was a continuation of a good run that Barnet were putting together before the season was cancelled. They had lost just one of their last 13 games, winning six of them. It’s that run of form which they can thank for getting them here.
Notts County vs Barnet Betting Advice
Ordinarily these ties are played over two legs. Due to the circumstances they are one-off games this year which should benefit the home team. However, Barnet’s win against Yeovil went some way to dispelling that so Notts County are going to have to be right at it. The visitors also have the advantage of having played a competitive game – something County haven’t done in over four months.
Barnet can take further confidence from the fact they won at Meadow Lane earlier in the campaign.
Key Facts – Notts County vs Barnet Betting Tip
- Finishing third in the curtailed regular season, Notts County won 10 of their 20 home games losing only two
- Barnet were solid 2-0 winners away to Yeovil last week in the quarter-final stage of the playoffs
- The visitors won here at the beginning of the season with the other meeting cancelled
Both these clubs will feel like they should be in the Football League. Whoever wins this will likely be favoured to win the final next Sunday. The story surrounding Barnet is hard to ignore due to how they reached the playoffs and everything appears to be in their favour going into this one.
They can repeat their victory here earlier in the season and progress.
