Dimitri Sea came off the bench to settle an entertaining encounter against Hartlepool United as The Bluebirds ran out 3-2 winners at The Dunes Hotel Stadium.
Offrande Zanzala and Josh Gordon both scored their first goals for the Club during the pulsating encounter which saw the League Two new boys twice come from behind to level.
However, Sea’s finish from six yards 18 minutes from time proved decisive and Mark Cooper was able to enjoy his first league win in the hotseat.
The Bluebirds got off to the perfect start when Zanzala showed his power and pace to burst clear down the right-hand side before keeping his composure to wriggle along the edge of the Pools box to fire a clinical low finish into the bottom corner of the net with just over two minutes on the clock.
However, Mark Cooper’s men could not capitalise on the early boost and the visitors were allowed to feel their way back into the game and began to look a threat at the other end.
That danger came to fruition on 17 minutes when Jamie Sterry delivered a wicked cross to the far post where Tyler Burey was able to stoop to head home his first Pools goal and level things up.
The equaliser gave Dave Challinor’s men further confidence, and they could have stolen in front when a cross from the left was met by debutant Will Goodwin, but his looping header was comfortably held by Paul Farman.
There was a wonderful opportunity for The Bluebirds to restore their lead on 34 minutes when Remeao Hutton got forward on the right to send a testing cross to the back post where Mark Ellis rose highest but put his header across goal and agonisingly wide.
Just as in the first half, Barrow enjoyed a wonderful start to the second period. A ball into the edge of the box was collected by Zanzala who fed it to Patrick Brough on the left whose first time cross found Josh Gordon at the far post and he stooped to nod in his first goal in Bluebirds colours.
There was a moment of panic at the other end not long afterwards when Sterry let fly from a long-range free kick and his effort took a deflection but did not fool Farman who readjusted to gather.
Once again though, the visitors came roaring back at Barrow. A ball was sent into the area for Mark Shelton who did well to control it on his chest and then cleverly clip a pass into the feet of Goodwin and he applied a clinical finishing touch.
A topsy-turvy game took another twist on 72 minutes when Ellis swivelled to shoot on the edge of the box and, when his shot hit Gordon’s heels, it fell perfectly for substitute to Dimitri Sea to ram the ball home from close range to make it 3-2.
There were nervous moments for Barrow, particularly during 10 minutes of stoppage time as Pools threw on defender Jake Lawlor up front, but Cooper’s men held on to clinch their first League Two win of the campaign.
Full Time: Barrow 3 Hartlepool United 2
Barrow: Farman, Hutton, Ellis, Arthur, Ntlhe, Brough, White, Banks, Williams (Kay 62), Gordon, Zanzala (Sea 56 (James 86)).
Subs: Moloney, Brown, Grayson, Taylor.
Booked: Arthur, Gordon.
Hartlepool United: Killip, Sterry, Ferguson, Liddle (Molyneux 73), Odusina, Shelton (Daly 73), Burey (Lawlor 89), Featherstone, Goodwin, Holohan, Byrne.
Subs: Mitchell, Smith, Ogle, Francis-Angol.
Booked: Burey.
Referee: Darren Drysdale
Attendance: 2846 (619 Hartlepool)