Barnsley will start the season on the road for just the second time in five years as they make an 183mile and three and a half hour trip to Suffolk to face Barnsley lad Mick McCarthy and his Ipswich Town side.
It looks a tough start for The Reds on their return to the Championship- they have won only one of their last nine trips to Portman Road and they have won only one of their last ten opening day fixtures- losing SEVEN. Indeed Barnsley have not won away on the opening day for exactly 20 years since their memorable 1996-1997 Premier League promotion winning campaign when they triumphed 2-1 at West Brom.
August itself looks a tough month for Barnsley as following the trip to Ipswich they have home games with Queens Park Rangers and Derby County who will both have promotion aspirations before finishing it with what could be two crucial Yorkshire derbies at Huddersfield and at home to Rotherham.
The Reds finish the season with a mega match at Newcastle United. The last time the Reds headed to the North East to St James’ Park they were thumped 6-1 and this final game of 2016-2017 could have major implications at both ends of the table.
Barnsley will look for only a second win in 16 trips to Hillsborough on Tuesday 13th December when they face last season’s beaten Championship play-off finalists Sheffield Wednesday with the return being on April Fools Day! Interestingly the last time Barnsley won at Hillsborough was the last time they played there on a Tuesday night- 1-0 in February 2009.
Key Dates:
First Game: Saturday 6th August, Ipswich Town, Portman Road
First Home Game: Saturday 13th August, Derby County, Oakwell.
Last Game: Sunday 7th May, Newcastle United, St James’ Park
Last Home Game: Saturday 29th April, Burton Albion, Oakwell.
Derby Days: Saturday 20th August, Huddersfield Town, John Smith’s Stadium. Saturday 27th August, Rotherham United, Oakwell. Saturday 1st October, Leeds United, Elland Road. Tuesday 13th December, Sheffield Wednesday, Hillsborough. Saturday 21st January, Leeds United, Oakwell. Saturday 28th January, Rotherham United, New York Stadium. Saturday 25th February, Huddersfield Town, Oakwell. Saturday 1st April, Sheffield Wednesday, Oakwell.
All the club’s 2016-2017 Skybet Championship fixtures can be viewed and downloaded by clicking here.