YORK City hit the bar twice and celebrated a goal from debutant Lewis Alessandra but could still only draw 1-1 at home to Barnet.

John Akinde’s 15th goal of the season cancelled out Alessandra’s 20th-minute strike and, despite the hosts mustering ten shots on target to the visitors’ two, it was a case of a couple more points dropped in the team’s battle against relegation from the Football League.

City started purposefully, forcing a flurry of early corners with Jake Hyde seeing a hooked effort deflected off target after Kyle Cameron had headed down a Luke Summerfield delivery.

Dave Winfield also headed over from another Summerfield flag kick while visiting danger-man Akinde lifted an edge-of-the-box opportunity over at the other end.

An excellent cross by Femi Ilesanmi then picked out Summerfield but his far-post attempt was deflected across the face of goal.

City forged ahead on 20 minutes, however, when Hyde broke through the right channel.

The former Barnet striker’s low, diagonal 15-yard shot struck Jamie Stephens’ right-hand post and Alessandra was on hand to find the net from ten yards.

Alessandra also called Stephens into action six minutes later before Luke Gambin cut in from the left flank and fired over from 15 yards.

The visitors were level, though, on 37 minutes when Alessandra failed to cut out a low cross from the right by full-back James Pearson and, with Ilesanmi slow to react, Akinde pounced to find the roof of Scott Flinders’ net from eight yards.

A lively Gambin also ran at Luke Hendire before drilling wide from 20 yards, while Winfield missed the target with a far-post header from Summerfield’s corner in first-half stoppage time. The hosts made a strong start to the second period although Summerfield’s hopeful 30-yard shot did not trouble Stephens.

Hyde, meanwhile, saw his dipping header tipped over by Stephens, who got the merest of touches to push an Alessandra shot wide after the former Plymouth attacker had charged through the left channel.

A curling Danny Galbraith free kick was also tipped on to the bar by Stephens after Alessandra had been tripped an inch outside the box by Elliott Johnson.

After Galbraith drove an ambitious 30-yard chance over, Summerfield’s header then beat Stephens but bounced off the bar following Ilesanmi’s inviting cross to the far post.

Barnet, though, remained a threat on the counter attack with Flinders getting a finger to Sam Togwell’s low shot as he burst clear through the right channel and Akinde also headed narrowly wide at the far post from a left-wing cross by Johnson. Hendrie, meanwhile, drove wide from distance, as did Andy Yiadom for the Bees.

On 80 minutes, a sidefooted Summerfield opportunity, from Alessandra’s chested lay off was comfortably dealt with by Stephens.

Ilesanmi went on to fire wide from 20 yards before, in the first minute of stoppage time, Bradley Fewster wormed his way into a shooting positon but shot straight at Stephens with only the Barnet keeper to beat.