Essex Senior League: London Bari 3 Burnham 0

London Bari ran out easy winners over Burnham in their final Essex Senior League fixture of the season at the Old Spotted Dog to clinch eighth place last night.

The two sides battled it out in treacherous conditions as heavy rain fell and chances were to a minimum in the first half, but the best of them fell to Bari.

A through ball found Daryl Merson, but through on goal he fluffed his lines and fired the ball tamely into the arms of visiting keeper Harry Aldridge.

Burnham produced even fewer scoring opportunities in the second half as the heavens opened, but Bari’s three goals were all spectacular in their own way.

A touch of class broke the deadlock in the 57th minute when Adrian Sanchez, with his back to goal, swivelled on his first touch, then flicked the ball over the outstretched leg of a Burnham defender and slotted the ball into the bottom left-hand corner.

The second goal, although it had an element of luck, was deserved for Bari as Castillo Herrera whipped in a 30-yard free-kick from out on the left and saw the pace and dip of the ball deceive everyone in the box, skip off the wet pitch and find the net.

The best goal was saved for last, though, as Burnham tried to clear their lines but saw a poor clearance fall to Hedayo Adetunbe.

His first touch allowed the ball to sit up perfectly, inviting him to shoot, and Adetunbe obliged to unleash a devil of shot that cannoned off the crossbar and into the net.

Burnham, in truth, were poor and created very little of note throughout the 90 minutes, as the their front three struggled to keep hold of the ball with creative movement.

Bari, in contrast, once they took the lead were sharp, creative and able to finish the campaign on a high as they climbed above Sawbridgeworth and Stansted.