After a couple of pre-season friendlies, Barnet started the 1920/21 Athenian League season with a trip to Bromley but lost 1-0. The Barnet line up was; Green, H King, Woolner, Skeggs, Allen, Tom King, Pett, Watkins, Jennings, Mason, Thompson. ‘Logger’ Mason had joined Barnet towards the end of the previous season from Hampstead Town and Alf Jennings was to be the first in a string of notable Barnet goalscorers throughout the club’s Athenian League history. Ernie Watkins later played for Birmingham City, Southend United, Brentford, Millwall, Fulham, Gillingham and Charlton Athletic. He was Brentford's leading goalscorer for seasons, 1926/27 and 1928/29.
This season, St Albans City and West London Old Boys replaced Cheshunt and Uxbridge. There was to be quite a difference as to the fate of the two new clubs!!
Barnet gained their first league victory with a 5-1 home win over Hampstead Town with Jennings grabbing his first goals for the club in terrific style with a hat trick. Logger Mason scored against his old club.
The following Saturday, Barnet progressed through their Preliminary Round FA Cup tie, winning 2-1 at home to the London General Omnibus Company, a London League Premier division club, Ernie Pett and Jennings scoring the goals. A fortnight later, Barnet played Luton Vauxhall in the 1st qualifying round and trounce the South Midlands League team 8-0 with Jennings scoring four.
The cup victory was sandwiched between two Athenian League defeats; 2-0 at Wimbledon and 5-3 at home to Southall despite an Ernie Pett hat trick. The following week, Barnet went out of the FA Cup at the 2nd qualifying round losing 4-2 at St Albans with Jennings and J Fillistone whose goals during the season were second only to Jennings.
A week later, Barnet began in the qualifying rounds of the Middlesex Senior Cup defeating AIRCO at Underhill 4-0 with Jennings and Fillistone both scoring and Mason grabbing a brace. They also progressed in the London Senior Cup defeating Clement Talbot, a manufacturing works side, 4-0 at Underhill after drawing the initial game, 1-1, Jennings coring in both matches. Jennings also scored four goals in a 5-0 friendly win over Wood Green Town before Barnet returned to the London Senior Cup, winning a 4th qualifying round match at Underhill, 5-1 against Woolwich Polytechnic, who played in the London League. Fillistone and Jennings both scored twice and Jennings was on target a week later as Barnet defeated Great Western Railway, who played in the Spartan League, 4-1 at Underhill in the Middlesex Senior Cup.
Barnet’s cup form continued with a 4-0 win away at Cheshunt in the semi-final of the Herts Charity Cup, Jennings grabbing a hat trick. Barnet then drew 1- at Green and Silley Wier, a South Essex League club before finishing the year at Underhill on Boxing Day with a stunning 5-1 home win over St Albans with Jennings grabbing a hat trick. It was the club’s first Athenian League game in over two months and Barnet ended the year 11th (out of 12), though they did have games in hand on all the other clubs. Barnet had four points from five matches and the team above them, West London Old Boys, had five points from 13 games, so it could be seen that Barnet were in somewhat of a false position.
1921 opened with a fine 4-0 home win over Isthmian League, Clapton in the 1st round of the FA Amateur Cup with goals from E Watkins, another played who had played for the club the previous season, Ernie Pett, Jennings and a penalty from Tom King. Barnet also progressed through to the 1st round proper of the London Senior Cup by beating Green and Silley Wier 4-0 atUnderhill with two goals each for Mercer and Ernie Watkins.
However, Barnet fell at the next stage in both the FA Amateur Cup and London senior Cup, losing 3-4 in the former at Wycombe Wanderers, Mercer scoring twice and Jennings grabbing one and bowing out in the latter after three close matches with Isthmian League, Dulwich Hamlet.
Barnet did progress though in the Middlesex Senior Cup, defeating Hampstead Town, at Cricklewood, in the 1st round proper by 3-0, Jennings, Watkins and F Thompson scoring for Barnet. In the 2nd round, Barnet defeated London League, Wealdstone 2-0 at Underhill with goals from Watkins and Thompson.
Meanwhile, improvements were taking place at Underhill with a new hut completed at the ground and a new committee room, referees room and separate dressing rooms and bathrooms for the home and way teams. The old hut was turned into a refreshment bar!!
Barnet lost 3-1 at St Albans in the final of the Herts Charity Cup leaving the Middlesex Senior Cup as the only possible cup trophy the club could win. At the end of February, Barnet played their first Athenian League game since Boxing Day playing a goalless draw at Chelmsford and, sadly, it was Alf Jennings’ last game for the club as he was to emigrate to Australia with his parents. A number of professional clubs had been chasing his signature prior to his decision.
At this point, Barnet were 10th in the league but with games in hand but with somewhat of a fixture congestion and now without their leading scorer. A 1-0 defeat in the league at Hampstead was followed by Barnet disappointingly losing 2-1 at Enfield in the semi-final of the Middlesex Senior Cup, Mercer scoring for Barnet. All that was left now for the club was to try and climb up towards a respectable place in the league table.
A 2-1 home win (Mercer & Mason) over struggling West London Old Boys was followed by two league wins over Easter; 4-2 at Kingstonian (Watkins 2, Mason, Lambert) and 4-1 at home to Summerstown (Lambert 2, Watkins, Mercer) though Barnet were still 10th with 11 points from 11 games after losing 2-1 (Mercer) at St Albans, who were now top and Barnet then lost their next two matches at home in the league; 3-0 to Kingstonian and 1-0 to Wimbledon.
The return of Fillistone to the attack seemed to bring about a change of fortune for Barnet despite the loss of half back, Harry King who signed professional forms for Crystal Palace. His last game for the club was a 4-1 home win over Bromley, Fillistone scoring twice and this was followed by wins at Metrogas by 3-2, Fillistone again scoring two and West London Old Boys by 5-1 (Mercer 2, Fillistone, Watkins 2).
By mid April, Barnet had climbed to 7th in the league with 16 points from 17 games. Fillistone scored twice in a 3-0 home win over Metrogas, which was Barnet’s fourth league win on the spin before a defeat at Summerstown and a goalless draw at Chelmsford.
Barnet then completed a league double over Luton Clarence who had looked like possible champions, winning 3-0 at Underhill and 4-3 at Luton with Fillistone scoring a hat trick, a feat he repeated in the final game of the season, away at Southall. However the home side won 6-3. The home game with Luton Clarence saw the debut of future club legend, George (Geordie) Sparrow who was to play such a big part at the club for most of the decade. Sparrow was signed from local junior club, Alston Rangers.
At the end of the season, Barnet finished 6th in the Athenian League table, just behind Luton Clarence on goal average with 24 points from 22 matches. St Albans were champions in their first season but the other newcomers, West London Old Boys finished bottom and left along with Wimbledon, who finished 2nd and joined the Isthmian League.
Alf Jennings was top scorer for Barnet with 31 goals, while Fillistone scored 20, Mercer 18 and Ernie Watkins, 15.