FA TROPHY: Concord Rangers face as tough a test against Barnet tomorrow in the FA Trophy as they did when they tackled Mansfield Town.

That is the view of assistant manager Nicky Cowley who said the highflying Conference Premier outfit will be in buoyant mood ahead of their match with the Beach Boys.

Whereas Mansfield Town were struggling at the bottom end of League Two, the Bees have enjoyed a barnstorming first half of the season, sitting seven points ahead of second-placed Macclesfield.

And Cowley is under no illusion that the match, that comes 14 months after Concord went down 3-0 to Barnet in the FA Cup, will be a huge test.

“It is possible that this could turn out to be as tough if not tougher,” said Cowley. “Barnet are flying in their division and when you win every week, sometimes it is easier to turn up and expect to perform well.

“Whereas Mansfield were really struggling and didn’t have a lot of confidence so in that regard it could be more difficult.”

Despite exiting the FA Cup in the first round, the Beach Boys have bounced back in fine fashion, scoring 11 unanswered goals in two games before progressing to the quarter-finals of the Essex Senior Cup this week.

They knocked out Conference South leaders Boreham Wood 4-0 in the last round and Cowley says the team is high on confidence.

“To have another big cup game is massive for us,” he said. “These games are always about small margins and we have taken a lot away from our cup experiences this year. We have moved on as a team and I think we have seen that in recent weeks.

“Our wins against Boreham Wood and Farnborough came after two games against Mansfield and we learned quickly what we needed to change from those games and applied them. We used that game as a springboard and we need to do that again tomorrow.

“We are in a good place,” he added. “It has been a thoroughly enjoyable period but we are keeping our feet on the ground.

“We did well to beat Grays in the cup after they scored a late goal and that speaks volumes of what we are about at the moment.

“We know what Barnet are about having played them last year and although there have been a lot of changes to the side we will be prepared for the challenge when it comes.”

Concord could hand new signing Mitchell Pinnock his second start in a week after impressing midweek while Barnet will be without a number of first-team regulars.

Martin Allen’s side will be without player-coach Jon Nurse, Luisma Villa and Lee Cook, with David Stephens a doubt.