Dagenham & Redbridge 0 Barrow AFC 0

This was Barrow AFC’s sixth goalless draw of the season, but like most of the ones that preceded it, this contest at Dagenham & Redbridge at Victoria Road was hardly a bore to watch.

There was some decent football on display from both sides, which was nullified by some very good defending at either end and it was the guys at the back who eventually came out on top.

The fact that there were chances for both teams to claim the points in a match that was played out in front of a raucous crowd of 2,173 – the Daggers’ second-largest of the campaign – meant this wasn’t one that would be forgotten by the time you left the ground.

It’s certainly a day that Barrow-born Olympic runner Chris Thompson will never forget, as he attended the match as part of his stag do, dressed as a full kit… you know the rest.

It led to the slightly unusual sight of seeing a grown man act as a team’s mascot before kick-off, as Thompson led the Bluebirds out with a purpose the starting XI matched in the early stages.

They produced a much more assured start in East London than they did at home to Boreham Wood the previous week, when they only really got going after falling 2-0 behind.

The front two of Jack Hindle and Jamie Philpot stretched the home defence on multiple occasions with some clever running and some neat interplay, while in midfield they had a firm grip for the first 45 minutes.

That was helped by Jason Taylor returning to the engine room, where he so often sets the tone for AFC, which in turn was brought about by the return to the centre of defence of club captain Josh Granite. It’s been a stop-start campaign for Granite, who had played 70 minutes for Barrow’s under-21 team last Wednesday in what was his first taste of action for nearly three months.

However, it was as though he’d never been away, as he completed 90 minutes, providing steel to the backline while also reminding us that he’s become more comfortable in possession since arriving from Ashton United last summer.

It was his perfectly-timed tackle that prevented Conor Wilkinson from getting a shot away in the ninth minute, while Manny Onariase matched his heroics by denying Hindle at the other end.

Philpot almost crowned what was his best performance for AFC so far when he headed on Lewis Hardcastle’s free kick after 25 minutes, only to be denied by a fine save by Dagenham goalkeeper Elliot Justham.

Both sides struck the woodwork either side of half-time, with Kenny Clark almost providing a sucker-punch on a level with Ebbsfleet’s winner against the Bluebirds back in November.

The same goalframe was then juddering again when John Rooney’s header crashed off the bar before Clark, otherwise excellent, almost gave us a late contender for own goal of the season.

For a moment, you’d thought Philpot had done it when he brought down Jack Barthram’s chipped pass before rippling the side netting in the 90th minute, almost avenging the Daggers’ late, late winner at Holker Street last September.

As it was, the scoreline remained blank – probably a fair result, in truth – in what was another good performance on the road by Ian Evatt’s men.