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Barnet in the Herts Senior Cup (Part One)

Last updated : 07 November 2012 By Jaybee

Barnet start their Herts Senior Cup journey tonight with a visit to Tring Athletic. Barnet first entered the Hertfordshire Senior Challenge Cup (Herts Senior Cup) during the Second World War. The club’s first match in the tournament was a 3-1 extra time win over Welwyn Garden City at Underhill in the 1st round in February 1940. The Bees went on to win the trophy at the first time of asking defeating Hitchin town 4-2 in the final after having deposed of Berkhemstead Town (13-0) and Ware (11-0) on the way to the final. The club won two more wartime County Cup Finals, winning 3-1 against St Albans City in 1942 and 8-0 over Hitchin town in the 1945 final.

Following the end of WW2, Barnet continued to enter the Senior Cup in Hertfordshire. In 1945/46, the Bees retained the trophy beating REME, a club from Hemel Hempstead, 6-0 in the final after having won 2-0 away at Hitchin Town in the 3rd round and beating Chipperfield, a village team based about five miles from Hemel Hempstead, 7-2 at Underhill in the semi-final.

The following season, 1946/47, Barnet reached the semi finals by again beating Hitchin in the 3rd round, this time winning 2-0 at Underhill, but they then lost 3-1 away at Berkhemstead Town.

However, Barnet were to win the County Cup for each of the next three seasons. In 1947/48, the Bees again defeated Hitchin, this time in the 4th round, before beating works team, De Haviland, of Hatfield, 10-0 in the semi final at Underhill. They won the final 3-1 against St Albans City.

The next year, 1948/49, the Bees won 3-0 at Bishops Stortford in the 4th round, before winning 2-0 away at St Albans in the semi final and then clinching the trophy with a 3-1 win over Cheshunt.

In 1949/50, Barnet made it a hat trick of wins, defeating Hertford Town 3-1 at Underhill in the 5th round, Hoddesdon 5-1 at home in the semi final and repeating the previous year’s 3-1 final victory over Cheshunt, at St Albans, this time following extra time.

In the next part of the story, we will look at the period from 1950 until Barnet went professional in 1965.