Tom Kennedy has said he cannot wait to sign a new contract with the Reds and continue his adventure at Oakwell.
The 27 year old originally arrived in South Yorkshire at the end of August 2012 on non-contract terms following his release from Leicester and made his debut in the incredible 5-0 win at Birmingham on the 22nd of September.
The former Rochdale man, who had worked under both Keith Hill and David Flitcroft at Spotland between 2007 and 2010, also started the following weekend in a 1-1 draw with Ipswich before being mysteriously frozen out for a month before returning as a second half substitute for the 4-1 home defeat to Nottingham Forest.
He started the 2-0 defeat at Derby on the 6th November but this was to be his last appearance under Hill and it was only after his sacking and the appointment of Flitcroft that Kennedy forced his way back into the side and he became a regular in 2013, appearing in 24 of Flitcroft’s 25 matches in charge, playing the full 90 minutes in 22 of them. The only game he missed was the 1-1 draw with Derby as he was suspended due to receiving the first red card of the season in the 6-0 defeat to Charlton.
Kennedy was one of seven players named on the “retained list” for 2013-2014 and after returning from holiday this week, will sit down with Flitcroft and the board to thrash out terms.
He told the Star:
“I want to sign as soon as possible! I’ve loved every second of playing for the club since I joined, it’s been brilliant. Barnsley is a club on the up and we’ve got a great set of lads. All the lads are excited about what we can achieve next season under David Flitcroft.
“I’d like to be a part of what the manager is building for next season, it could be a bright future.
“Everybody stepped up to the plate this season to make sure we avoided relegation. It was an incredible effort because no one gave us a hope in hell of staying up.
“The form we showed in those 20-odd games with Flicker was brilliant, we were destined for the drop and we showed what we were made of. It was a fantastic achievement to stay up, definitely one of the highlights of my career.”