Andy Whing sprang to Mat Sadler’s defence despite an end-of-game rebuke from his best friend following Barrow’s deserved 2-0 win over faltering promotion contenders Walsall.
Aaron Pressley and Emile Acquah netted the goals as the Cumbrians’ recent revival stretched to one defeat in nine games.
Walsall, with only two wins from a possible 17, did not manage a shot on target, with a poor Ellis Harrison header their best effort before the break.
The rival bosses are great friends and went to school together.
“He just told me I am a rubbish best friend,” said Whing, who admits the season is coming to an end too soon for his impressive outfit.
“I will take it. And I am not sure about their crowd booing halfway through the first half.
“They are in the top three and need to get behind the team. It is ridiculous the stick he gets sometimes.
“I hope they go up but this was all about us winning. I thought we looked comfortable the whole game.
“They had one chance because of our own doing. That could have changed the game had it gone in even though we wouldn’t have deserved it because we should have been two or three up.”
Barrow’s late charge has come too late to make a push for the play-offs, a statistic acknowledged by Whing.
“I am gutted the season is running out the form we are in,” he said. “But hopefully we can maintain this momentum going into next season.”
Pressley netted his third goal in two games and fourth of the season after 23 minutes, firing home after Tommy Simkin saved his first effort. Substitute Acquah scored a stoppage-time clincher after good work by Elliot Newby.
On his team’s latest setback, Sadler said: “The opening 30 minutes were disappointing. We were waiting for something to happen and not being on the front foot.
“It was below our standards. You give them the first goal and Barrow are very good at sitting back and defending. So, it was always going to be important.
“Ellis’s chance was probably our only real clear-cut chance.
“I am not going to hide from the fact it wasn’t the performance we wanted.
“We have to show resolve, resilience and heart that we have shown countless times. We have had a couple of poor performances on the trot and we want to turn that around.
“But we have put ourselves in this position to be disappointed because of what we have done so far. We cannot lose sight of that and where we are. The opportunities that are still there are big.”
