Tottenham were the home team the last time City were in this neck of the north London woods.

Before that, they were jostling with names such as Henry, Vieira and Bergkamp.

Barnet could boast a Yakubu in their ranks but this was centre half Ismail and no relation whatsoever to the £12million Everton hitman.

Underhill is only eight miles from the Emirates Stadium but it might as well be on a different planet.

With its dramatic slope from one end to the other - which used to measure up to eight feet in its 1960s pomp' - and the covered terrace that runs all the way alongside, City's players and travelling army must have wondered what parallel universe they had landed on.

But this is the real world now. Forget fond memories of past trips to Highbury and White Hart Lane, Barnet is the League Two reality and City had better get used to it.

Skipper David Wetherall, the only playing survivor from the Premier League, hit the nail on the head.

"These are the type of places we need to be coming away from with three points," he said.

"We can't afford too many slip-ups if we want to achieve our goal and get out this league. This was pretty similar to what happened at Shrewsbury and we've got to sort that out.

"We've all got to pull our weight for the full game. We need 11 players to perform for 90 minutes - we can't just hold tight for 45 and try and turn it all round."

You sensed it was going to be one of those days when the heavily-bandaged Paul Evans gingerly left the scene early on looking like an extra from Saving Private Ryan.

It was hardly the 33rd birthday present the Welshman had wanted when he smacked heads with Barnet playmaker Jason Puncheon.

Evans disappeared to hospital and eight stitches for a wound stretching across his forehead. Puncheon was able to continue after treatment on the pitch - and free to wreak stoppage-time havoc.

Barnet's free-kick threat stayed on while City's left the ground in an ambulance. The significance of that was felt in the third minute of stoppage time.

Without Evans, City had wasted a couple of decent set-piece opportunities as they pressed for a winner. At the other end, Puncheon rattled a sighter against the bar before giving Donovan Ricketts absolutely no chance with a pearler into the top left corner.

The free-kick award itself was shrouded in controversy. Referee Pat Miller was under pressure to stop play with Kyle Nix down after a head knock of his own and chose to punish Scott Phelan for a pull on Adam Birchall rather than the Barnet striker's tug in their initial skirmish.

Stuart McCall admitted it was a brave call at the time for the official to make but, having watched the match video again on the coach home, he was fuming at the lack of any obvious foul.

Given Puncheon's reputation - he is a top-flight star in the making, according to his manager - awarding a free-kick in that range was nearly as good as a penalty.

So City were left stunned to leave a game that should have been a three-point banker without even one.

But the real damage had been done in the first half when several players, particularly up front, did not show up.

City as an attacking force were anonymous, one half-hearted break from Barry Conlon aside, and were grateful that Barnet's own spirited attempts lacked any real bite.

Birchall twice should have made the visitors pay: Joe Devera clipped the bar and Ricketts saved well from Anthony Thomas, the keeper tweaking his groin in the process.

Barnet's lead three minutes before the break was justified, though it did come in freak circumstances as Puncheon's free-kick was somehow backheeled into his own net by an unwitting Eddie Johnson.

He could try to do that again 1,000 times on the training ground and not pull it off.

The scoreline gave McCall added ammunition to rip into his players at half-time, especially the front two and widemen who had contributed little.

Guylain Ndumbu-Nsungu was removed and Omar Daley, who had got little out of Barnet's debutant left back Kenny Gillet, was shoved down the middle. The tactical switch should have worked a treat.

With ears still ringing, City were level within six minutes. Paul Heckingbottom's long throw was only partially cleared for Johnson, 20 yards out, to whisk a clean left-foot strike past a startled Lee Harrison.

Suddenly we had a different game on our hands. The Barnet locals, accustomed to disappointment, grew restless and their team with it - Johnson admitted the players could hear every shout from a crowd that numbered less than 2,500.

Conlon, woken from his first-half slumbers, twice flicked on to send Daley in the clear. The Jamaican's first hurried attempt whistled into the open terrace behind the goal; the second was more measured but bounced clear off the foot of the post.

It was a carbon copy of Daley's miss against Macclesfield on the opening day - and his frustration soon increased when another jinking run and shot brought the same result, taking City's tally to an implausible six shots against the woodwork from five matches.

Nix tumbled under Devera's penalty-box tackle but was booked for diving and the City whirlwind slowly blew itself out.

Barnet, having clung on for so long, suddenly found a second wind through Puncheon's free-kick prowess and, with time virtually up, he conjured a winner that would have done Tottenham or Arsenal proud, if that's any consolation.

Which it's not.

TELEGRAPH & ARGUS 

BARNET	BRADFORD CITY
1 Lee Harrison	1 Donovan Ricketts
2 Joe Devera	3 Paul Heckingbottom
5 Ismail Yakubu	4 Paul Evans
8 Anthony Thomas	5 David Wetherall
10 Adam Birchall	6 Mark Bower
11 Jason Puncheon	7 Omar Daley
14 Max Porter	8 Eddie Johnson
16 Ashley Carew	9 Barry Conlon
19 Sagi Burton	17 Thomas Harban
21 Kenny Gillet	22 Kyle Nix
24 Josh Wright	24 Guylain Ndumbu-Nsungu
SUBSTITUTES	SUBSTITUTES
3 Nicky Nicolau for 24 (75)	12 Matthew Clarke
7 Liam Hatch for 10 (86)	15 Joe Colbeck for 24 (46)
15 Stepane Seanla	16 Simon Ainge
18 Rob Beckwith	20 Scott Phelan for 4 (14)
22 Joe O'Cearuill	25 Luke Medley for 9 (81)

MATCH OFFICIALS:
Referee:	P Miller
Assistant Referee:	M Blackledge
Assistant Referee:	B Malone
4th Official:	O Saliy

GOALSCORERS:
BARNET	BRADFORD CITY
Johnson og (43)	Johnson (52)
Puncheon (90)

DISCIPLINARY
BARNET	BRADFORD CITY
Puncheon (80)	Phelan (71)
Gillet (86)	Nix (73)
	...