Barrow AFC’s hopes of closing the gap on the automatic League Two promotion places went up in smoke as they fell to a heavy defeat at fellow high-fliers Stevenage.

The performance at Broadhall Way would have been an alarming one for manager Pete Wild, whose side bore no resemblance to the one who had made an unlikely charge to the table’s upper reaches this season.

Up against the only team in the division with a better home record than them, the Bluebirds subsided in a manner previously not seen under the current regime.

What is for certain is that they have a lot to make up for when they travel to Cumbrian rivals Carlisle next Saturday.

Up against opponents who had only dropped three points on their own patch this season, the Bluebirds knew they were likely to come under early pressure.

This was the case, and it was actually Wild’s boys who came close to opening the scoring when Ben Whitfield teed up a shot for Josh Kay, whose low effort was deflected just wide.

Having shown such diligence in the opening stages, the visitors were made to pay for switching off for the first time in the game after 18 minutes.

It was a wonderful strike from distance by Jake Reeves that flew past a helpless Paul Farman to put Stevenage ahead, but there will be inquests into how he was given so long to line up his shot with no-one closing him.

Barrow were presented with a chance to hit back when ‘Boro goalkeeper Taye Ashby-Hammond threw the ball straight to Whitfield, who ignored Josh Gordon in the centre to shoot into the side netting.

His decision was surely another hot topic in the away changing room at half-time as the Bluebirds remained behind going into the break.

The deficit was increased just five minutes after the restart and even though it came through another great finish, this time it really was self-inflicted.

It turned out to be an unhappy return to his old club for Farman as his clearance when straight to Jamie Reid, who lobbed the ball over him and into his vacant net from 30 yards.

Ashby-Hammond was not really being worked enough at the other end, with Barrow desperately needing a response, aside from having to claw away a Kay free kick just before the hour mark.

The Bluebirds were fortunate Reid did not finish the match as a contest when he shot into the side netting after a mistake by Patrick Brough.

Barrow failed to heed this warning, though, and it really was game over after 76 minutes when Dan Sweeney was left unmarked to head in Reeves’ corner.

It was going from bad to worse for the visitors, who continued to implode when Tyrell Warren bundled over Reid in the area to concede a penalty, which Luke Norris confidently dispatched by sending Farman the wrong way.

A miserable evening was then rounded off when Warren flicked a header into his own net from another Reeves corner with four minutes left.