Harrogate Town have been relegated to National League after six seasons in League Two after a dramatic final afternoon of the season.

Despite taking nine points from their previous five games, the North Yorkshire side began the final day in the relegation zone on goal difference and needing to pick up more points against Barnet at the sold-out Exercise Stadium than third-bottom Newport managed at rock-bottom Barrow.

Barnet went ahead inside five minutes through Callum Stead but news soon filtered through that Barrow were ahead against Newport to give the Suphurites hope.

Bryn Morris' penalty levelled things for the hosts just before the half-hour and it was enough to take Harrogate back above the dotted line in the live table.

Despite Harrogate hitting the crossbar through Shawn McCoulsky and Tobias Brennan missing a good chance it stayed that way until 14 minutes from time when Newport equalised at Barrow, meaning Town needed to find a winner.

Instead Phillip Chinedu came off the bench to fire home Barnet's winner on 82 minutes to see the Bees finish in eighth with 76 points and seal Harrogate's fate with a 27th defeat of the campaign.

It is the first time they have suffered relegation under long-serving boss Simon Weaver who has been in charge since May 2009.

Weaver, whose father Irving is the owner of the club, led them to promotions from National League North in 2018 and the National League two years later.

Prior to the former Lincoln defender's appointment, Harrogate had never played above the sixth tier.

Town made a solid start to the season and their victory at then-unbeaten Gillingham on 27 September was a fourth in their opening 10 matches.

However, their form nosedived after that and they failed to win a league match in October, November, December or January.

By the time they ended their 20-game wait for a League Two victory with a surprise 2-1 success over promotion-chasing Cambridge United they had sunk to the foot of the table.

That result kick-started a five-match unbeaten run that meant they ended February in the relegation zone on goal difference only.

Successive defeats to MK Dons and Salford stalled their progress but a 3-0 win at Tranmere, their biggest margin of victory this season, reignited hopes of avoiding the drop.

A 2-1 defeat in a six-pointer at Newport on 11 April was a major blow but successive wins over Colchester and at Walsall kept their EFL hopes alive going into the final game.

The Sulphurites are the division's lowest scorers with just 39 and their joint top scorers Stephen Duke-McKenna and Jack Muldoon have both netted five league goals, with neither having scored this calendar year.

Harrogate's relegation comes a week to the day that North Yorkshire rivals York were promoted back to the EFL after a decade in non-league.