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While the win pushes Brown's men up to fifth in the table, the fact remains that they have only really produced one half of good football at the Rec this season — against Gravesend — yet have picked up seven points out of a possible nine.
Winning ugly is a great skill to perfect but in a daunting month of fixtures, Aldershot will have to play much better than this if they are to maintain their position near the top.
Speaking after Saturday's match, a noticeably concerned Brown admitted that his side didn't even deserve a point, let alone all three.
“I thought Halifax were very good, they won every battle and were the better side throughout, and while I'm delighted for myself, I'm gutted for Chris [Wilder, Halifax manager] because it really was daylight robbery today,” he said.
“If you're manager or a supporter you don't mind if there's an injustice in your favour but Darren Barnard's goal was the only worthwhile attempt we had at goal, whereas they could have had a hatful.
“I'm pleased the two centre halves kept a clean sheet by hook or by crook, but there are massive problems for us because we didn't play at any time today.
“Halifax won all the first and second challenges and while it was a blustery, horrible day for football, they certainly played it and I told the players I was very disappointed with their performance. We're going to have to improve drastically.”
Brown made two changes to the side that beat Stafford Rangers a week ago, bringing in Phil Anderson for the injured Dean Smith and slotting in new loan signing Ben Harding in the centre of the park at the expense of Ryan Scott. Fellow new signing Joel Watson started on the bench.
With Mark Molesley still out injured with heel and back problems, Harding has been brought in until the end of the year to add a touch of guile and skill to the side and he made a good early impression.
It was the visitors who settled first though, with Andy Campbell and Ryan Sugden causing problems with their pace and energy, but Halifax's downfall so far this season has stemmed from mistakes at the back and it nearly proved so again in the ninth minute.
Deep in his own half, Halifax ‘keeper Craig Mawson mishit a free kick low onto the head of Marcus Gayle, and the ball ricocheted invitingly to John Grant 25 yards out.
The former Shayman was clear on goal but as he entered the area, he momentarily hesitated, a mistake that allowed Mawson time to get down low and block his curled shot.
Six minutes later, Grant was back in the thick of the action when he chased down a ball that seemed to be heading out for a goal kick and laid the ball back for Ryan Williams on the left touchline. The winger took one touch and squared it to Harding, but the MK Dons man bent the ball over the bar.
Unfortunately that was as good as it got for the Shots — until the last minute that is -— and the visitors began to show the kind of form that got them to last year's play-off final.
With Danny Forrest and Lewis Killeen both full of pace and enterprise, the Aldershot defence were creaking and in the 19th minute, Halifax created their first real chance.
After a long clearance up the left, Sugden nodded the ball on to Campbell, who played it into the middle to Forrest who charged at Anderson towards the right of the box.
Twisting the young defender inside out, Forrest went right, then left and moved the ball on to his left boot before smashing it low and hard but Nikki Bull was equal to it and blocked the effort down low.
The opportunity seemed to galvanise the Shaymen and they soon started to take over and should have taken a deserved lead 10 minutes later when former Middlesborough striker Campbell somehow contrived to miss an open goal from just five yards out.
The move began as Killeen picked the ball up on the left flank and burst into the middle and with Andy Edwards advancing towards him, the midfielder slipped it right to Martin Foster.
The Halifax captain took a quick glance up before smashing a powerful low drive towards the bottom right hand corner, which Bull did brilliantly to palm away. However, the ball fell straight to Campbell inside the six yard box but with the empty goal gaping, he blasted it high over the bar.
The rest of the half saw the visitors pour forward at every available opportunity on the counter-attack, and the pattern continued after the half-time interval with Killeen going close in the 47th minute.
Just 60 seconds later, substitute Matt Doughty then played a deep cross into the box from the left and found the unmarked Mark Roberts, but the centre half's looping header drifted inches wide of the left post.
The Shaymen continued to pile on the pressure and much of the game was played in the Aldershot half, as the backline desperately faced down attack after attack.
In the 82nd minute, a long clearance from an Aldershot corner saw Campbell and Ryan Scott desperately chase back for the ball, after it bounced high over their heads into clear space in the Aldershot final third.
With no one else near them, the ball seemed to hit Scott's hand in the box as both players tussled for possession but despite the furious protests of the Halifax bench, the referee waved it away.
Such was the sense of injustice felt by the visitors that coach Lee Butler was sent to the stands, but worse was to follow for the Shaymen two minutes from time when Barnard snatched the points.
Midway in the Halifax half Aldershot were awarded a free kick after a foul on Soares, which Ricky Newman took quickly, touching it left to Barnard 30 yards out.
With defenders rushing to close him down, the veteran left back knew he had no time to waste and unleashed an unstoppable drive that seared into the bottom right hand corner, sending the home fans into ecstasy and leaving the visitors scratching their heads in disbelief.
Despite a frenetic injury time period, the hosts hung on to claim the points that move them further up the table, but it was a game that posed more questions than answers for Brown, heading into what should prove a challenging month.
With thanks to the Aldershot News.