Barry Town United suffered their second defeat of the season as Colwyn Bay came from two goals down to claim a 5-2 victory at the Blue Turtle Arena.
First-half goals from Noah Daley and Mikey George had put The Town in control, but a goal shortly before the interval gave the hosts a route back into the contest. Colwyn Bay then struck four unanswered goals after the break to turn the game around.
First Half
The opening stages proved scrappy, with both sides looking to gain a foothold in the contest.
The first opportunity fell to Colwyn Bay after two minutes when a deflected cross was met by a header at the near post, forcing George Ratcliffe to tip the ball over the crossbar.
Barry gradually began to settle and created their first notable opportunity in the 21st minute. Neat combination play involving Jack Shaw, Ellis Williams, Daniel Smith and Noah Daley ended with Daley trying his luck from distance, but his effort was comfortably gathered.
The hosts continued to threaten from set-pieces, with Ratcliffe called into action again four minutes later to palm away an effort from the edge of the area.
However, it was Barry who broke the deadlock on 29 minutes.
Some excellent build-up play saw Smith find Mikey George making his way forward before the ball was worked to Dan Barton. His delivery towards the back post was met by Daley, who guided his header into the opposite corner to give The Town a 1-0 lead.
Seven minutes later, Barry doubled their advantage.
Shaw won possession inside his own half before Barry broke quickly. George raced forward from deep and was played through one-on-one, keeping his composure to finish into the bottom corner and make it 2-0.
Colwyn Bay responded before the interval, however, pulling one back in the 40th minute to reduce Barry’s advantage.
The hosts then enjoyed a sustained spell of pressure before half-time. Ratcliffe produced another save from a back-post header before Will Richards made an important challenge inside the penalty area to prevent another opportunity.
Barry survived further pressure in added time to head into the break with a 2-1 advantage.
Half-time: Colwyn Bay 1-2 Barry Town United
Second Half
The restart was briefly delayed due to an issue with the floodlights before Theo Wharton eventually got the second half underway.
Colwyn Bay made a fast start and were level just two minutes after the restart. An inswinging corner was met by a header at the back post to make it 2-2, with the goal confirmed following communication between the referee and VAR.
The hosts continued to apply the pressure and almost completed the turnaround moments later, but an effort from the edge of the area was dragged wide.
Barry struggled to regain the control they had shown during periods of the first half, with Colwyn Bay maintaining the pressure before taking the lead in the 57th minute.
Jadyn Crosbie was introduced in place of Daniel Smith as The Town looked for a response.
However, Colwyn Bay extended their advantage from another set-piece. A free-kick was delivered into the Barry penalty area and, after the initial header was won, a second header found the net to make it 4-2.
In front of an attendance of 848, Barry continued searching for a way back into the contest.
One of The Town’s best moves of the second half came in the 79th minute as a patient passing move eventually saw Wharton find Callum Sainty, whose effort from distance went over the crossbar.
Josh Bernard replaced Shaw with seven minutes of normal time remaining before Barry threatened again late on. James Lester and Daley combined well, allowing the latter to get a shot away on his left foot, but his effort went narrowly past the right-hand post.
With four minutes of additional time indicated, Sainty produced an important intervention to initially prevent what looked certain to be a fifth for the hosts.
Colwyn Bay would eventually add another before the final whistle, completing a difficult second half for The Town and securing a 5-2 victory.
Barry will now look to respond after suffering their second defeat of the Cymru Premier campaign.
Full-time: Colwyn Bay 5-2 Barry Town United
Barry Town United: Ratcliffe, George, Williams, Sainty, Daley, Barton, Smith, Wharton, Lester, Shaw, Richards.
Subs: Thomas, Crosbie, Schwank, Bernard, Njie.