What spells should I consider for bards magical secrets

[KorvinStarmast]

conjure animals, counterspell

That's what I finally went with. Surprisingly, nobody in the party was interested in me getting fireball, so I took it off of the list.

In the first combat using the Conjure Animals (two Dire Wolves) the war domain cleric mounted the second wolf and rode in pursuit of a fleeing enemy. Worked out great.

The DM and I have worked out a deal, ahead of time. No hordes. I've offered a limited list of CR 2 (to include the giant crayfish from Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan; my bards from a jungly coastal area, so crawdads are a thing for her), CR 1 and CR 1/2 critters. Why? Table time and clutter. We are on the same wavelength. I can't stress enough how important it is (my friend's druid whom I DM for likewise worked with me on a critter list) for the conjurer and the DM to work together on this. A little prevention precludes play stoppages and such.

Thanks to all for the various suggestions.