Barnet boss Dean Brennan was ecstatic with his side’s performance as the Bees booked their place in the second round of the FA Cup with a 1-0 win away at Curzon Ashton on Saturday.

Top scorer Nicke Kabamba powered in a header from Finley Potter’s cross on 15 minutes to give the away side an early lead before seeing the game out to send Brennan’s side into the next round.

“I’m buzzing. I have to be honest. I’m absolutely buzzing!”,said a delighted Brennan.

“Our supporters came up here and the team, the togetherness, our players. How good were our players? All the elements went against us, but full credit to Curzon, they had a real go when we went down to 10 men, but I thought our organisation was excellent.”

Barnet midfielder Connor Stevens saw red in the first half for a second bookable offence, but Brennan wasn’t too happy with the first yellow his player received which ultimately led to the dismissal.

“The first one’s not a yellow card. It’s a clean tackle and I thought Connor was outstanding. I thought he was absolutely immense,” added Brennan.

“Obviously, he makes a slight error for the second. He has a little nibble at him and the lad’s rolled around on the floor like he’s been shot dead. They have a lot of experienced players and there was a lot of gamesmanship in their game.

“The only thing I was a little bit disappointed with is that we were totally dominant with 11 men but didn’t go two or three up, and that’s what you have to do here. You always get drama in the cup and the main thing for us is that we’re into the second round.”

Speaking of star striker Kabamba, whose goal secured the win for the Bees on the day, Brennan was keen to point out the importance of the matchwinner.

“He’s been brilliant, Nicke. He scored again in the six-yard box, and I keep telling him get into the six-yard box as much as you can," he said.

"We transformed the player who, before he came here, didn’t score a lot of goals.

“If he keeps getting in the right positions, he’ll score more goals. I’m delighted for him because he’s a great kid and he’s got a great attitude.”

Brennan’s side were handed a trip to League Two outfit Newport County in the next round, ahead of a Middlesex Senior Cup tie at Broadfields United in midweek.

They continue their travels this weekend as they face possibly their toughest test of the campaign yet at National League leaders Chesterfield in a crunch clash at the top of the table.