Karl Robinson feels Salford deserve more credit after easing to win at Barnet

Salford manager Karl Robinson praised his side after claiming a first away league win in four matches with a 3-1 victory over Barnet at the Hive.

Josh Austerfield opened the scoring on his 50th appearance for the club, reacting quickest after his initial effort was saved to convert the rebound.

The visitors doubled their advantage when pressure from Kallum Cesay forced Nnamdi Ofoborh into turning Jorge Grant’s pass into his own net.

Daniel Udoh added a third shortly after the break, finishing calmly from close range, before Oliver Hawkins pulled a late consolation goal back for the hosts.

“It was a perfect day for us because this is a very difficult place to come,” Robinson said.

“I thought we started poorly and Barnet were aggressive, which rushed us into doing things we don’t normally do.

“When the game was stopped for an injury, it gave us a chance to regroup and demand more from the players.

“It was pleasing to see them take on what we’ve been working on in training and there was an element of that in the second goal.”

Robinson was full of praise for Austerfield and his squad depth amid an injury-hit period.

He added: “Josh has been brilliant and he’s a big player for us. We recruited well in the summer to make sure others could stand up and be counted when injuries hit.”

Despite conceding late, Robinson felt his side deserved the points and said: “We stayed in the game, were compact and defended really well.

“A clean sheet probably would have been deserved after the first 15 minutes.

“We’ve got five key players injured and people don’t give this team enough credit. It’s a tough time around the camp but the group stuck together.”

Barnet boss Dean Brennan admitted his side were beaten by the better team.

“Salford were the better opposition and we have to take our medicine,” Brennan said.

“This game is about both boxes and they’ve got a lot of quality. Their attacking players caused us problems after the first 40 minutes.

“I thought we were the better side early on but didn’t score and that cost us. When they built momentum, they took their chances.”

Brennan acknowledged his side are still adapting to life at this level and added: “We’re very naive at times and a lot of players, including myself, are learning.

“But 28 points from 21 games isn’t a good return and our output in the final third hasn’t been good enough.

“At 3-0 it could have got ugly, but it didn’t. The lads never gave in and kept pushing. We’re a small club, but we’ve got a big heart.”