180 minutes. 2 Wins. 2 Clean Sheets. This management larks pretty easy hey…
When Simon Davey took over first team affairs from Andy Ritchie he said the defensive side of the team needed to be attended to.
He's certainly done that. Before Saturday's game with Ipswich, The Reds had kept just ONE clean sheet in all competitions this season and were conceding on average 2 goals a game. Well now in 4 days the number of clean sheets has been trebled, The Reds have won 3 home games in a row and everything's looking rosy.
Those 180 minutes haven't been pretty- far from it.
But too often this season Barnsley have played teams off the park but come away with nothing. The last 2 games have been turgid often unbearable encounters but have yielded maximum points. After a 2-0 defeat at Crystal Palace a week and a half ago The Reds were 6 points off 5th bottom and Leeds boss Dennis Wise stated there was a 4 team mini-league at bottom. Now Barnsley sit 4th bottom, just a point off 19th and 3 off 16th (albeit Ipswich play tonight)
Following on from Saturday's last gasp 1-0 success over Ipswich Davey was forced into make two changes. Captain Paul Reid and Match-Winner Grant McCann were both missing through injury. Brian Howard (ill talk about him later) and Neil Austin came into the side. Marc Richards partnered Leon Knight upfront with Daniel Nardiello back on the bench.
This was a real relegation six-pointer with both sides in desperate need of the points. And it showed.
In contrast to recent matches though Barnsley had the better of the first half before being slaughtered in the second period.
Richards inexplicably hit the bar from 2 yards before The Reds took the lead after 24 minutes.
Efe Sodje dallied on the ball allowing Knight to intercept and he fed Richards down the right. A woeful first touch led to groans from the Oakwell faithful but Richards managed to control the ball enough to play it across for Howard to steer it past Flahavan
Howard was simply terrific last night. Obviously hurting at being dropped for the first time this season on Saturday and not even getting on the pitch seemed to spur him on and he was at the heart of everything whilst even tracking back and tackling.
The Reds failed to build on their possession and they rarely got a touch in the second half.
But the reason Southend are bottom and have scored just 16 goals this season was plain to see.
Former Chesterfield midfielder Jamal Campbell-Ryce terrorised Paul Heckingbottom with his pace but a lot of Southend's play ended when they reached the edge of the Barnsley penalty area.
The much heralded Freddy Eastwood was anonymous and often looked frustrated and Oakwell nerves could have been settled on 82minutes.
Substitute Kyel Reid, who didn't enter proceedings until the 66th minute had an eventful 24 minutes when firstly he played a great ball across the area for fellow sub Martin Devaney but Flahavan superbly blocked his effort and the ball ran behind Knight.
Reid did settle the game with 3 minutes remaining however with a free-kick positioned on the right hand side of the area. There was bemusement amongst the fans that only Nardiello and Knight were in the area waiting for the ball but Reid didn't need either of them as he whipped it straight into the far corner. Knight raced away claming a touch but Reid seemed adamant it was his goal.
Reid though soured his night in stoppage time. After being booked early on for a foul he needlessly flicked the ball away and was shown a second yellow
That's now 3 home victories on the spin but a visit to Elland Road and a team who are included in one of those 3 wins, Leeds United is next up. Leeds 2-1 defeat to Burnley last night saw The Reds leapfrog The Whites and escape the relegation zone. But with 8 away defeats on the bounce, a victory on Saturday could be the most crucial of them all.
Player Ratings:
Nick Colgan: Had nothing to do all game but 2 successive clean sheets will do wonders for his confidence. 7
Neil Austin: Didn't put a foot wrong and was always prepared to put his head where it would hurt. 7
Antony Kay: Becoming better with every game. Nullified the threat of Eastwood. Took a worrying knock late on. 8
Bobby Hassell ©: Stand in skipper for Reid and again excellent. So much a better centre back than right back. 8
Paul Heckingbottom: Troubled by Campbell-Ryce's pace but better than in recent games. 6
Brian Howard: Outstanding. The best individual performance I've seen from a Barnsley player in years! No matter what his disagreement with the Board this lad MUST always start. 10
Sam Togwell: Again ran his socks off but seems to be running nowhere. A bystander during the game. Subbed. 6
Ronnie Wallwork: A marked improvement on Saturday but he couldn't have been worse. Helped out when Southend attacked in the second half. Misses the next two games though. Booked. 7
Paul Hayes: Looks so dis-interested now. Whether on the wing or up front he fails to spark. Subbed. 5
Leon Knight: Short of match fitness and so Ill still give him a chance as he is a proven goal-scorer but couldn't get into the game last night. 5
Marc Richards: Looks like he had his moment on Saturday. Back to his garbage best last night. Subbed. 5
Substitutes:
Kyel Reid (for Hayes 66) Again his introduction changed the game. Scored and got sent-off. Doesn't get much more eventful. Sent Off. 8
Martin Devaney (for Togwell 75) Had a great chance to seal the game before Reid did. Been partly forgiven for his tantrum at the weekend. 6
Daniel Nardiello (for Richards 86) Back to his 4 minute cameo role. Shouldn't start with Knight but needs longer than this. 6
Unused Substitutes:
Robbie Williams, Kyle Letheren
Sponsors Man of The Match: Brian Howard
BarnsleyBoy's Man of the Match: No disagreement from me, Howard was outstanding.
Most Impressed By Southend's: Jamal Campbell-Ryce. His pace had hearts in mouth. Also a special mention to the 200-odd Southend fans who travelled the 400mile 6 hour round trip to watch their bottom of the table side defeated again.
Ref Watch: Graham Laws: Was finally impressed by a ref until he failed to show common sense with Reid in stoppage time. 7
Coca Cola Championship Results: Tuesday 28th November 2006:
Barnsley 2-0 Southend
Burnley 2-1 Leeds
Colchester 5-1 Hull
Norwich 3-1 Leicester
Plymouth 1-0 Luton
Preston 1-1 Coventry
QPR 1-2 Sunderland
Sheffield Wednesday 3-1 West Brom
Stoke 3-0 Cardiff
Wolves 1-1 Crystal Palace
Barnsley lie in 21st place in the Championship with 21 points from 20 games. We are 12 points off the Play-Offs, 16 points off the Automatic Promotion Places, 17 points off First Place and 2 points above the Relegation Zone.
Next Up:
On The Road:
Coca Cola Championship Matchday Twenty One: Leeds United v Barnsley Saturday 2nd December 2006 Kick Off 12noon. PLEASE NOTE EARLIER KICK-OFF TIME!!!
Tickets for the game are priced at:
Adults: £26
OAPs (over 60): £15
Juveniles (U16): £15
Barnsley have received an allocation of just over 4,800 tickets for the game at Elland Road.
Official Reds On The Road coaches will be making the trip to Leeds. Coach tickets are also on sale, priced at £19.00 and coaches will depart Oakwell at 10am on the day of the game.
At Oakwell:
Coca Cola Championship Matchday Twenty Two: Barnsley v West Bromwich Albion Sunday 10th December 2006 Kick-Off 1.15pm
Please Note: This match is LIVE on SKY.
Tickets for the big game are priced at:
East Stand and West Stand Upper Tiers
Adults £22.00
OAP/Juvenile £13.00
Juveniles (U11) £7.00
Barnsley Chronicle Family Area
Adults £22.00
OAP £13.00
Juvenile £13.00
Juveniles (U11) £7.00
East Stand Lower and West Stand Lower
Adults £21.00
OAP/Juveniles £12.00
Juveniles (U11) £6.00
Enterprise PLC Stand (Pontefract Road End)
Adults £20.00
OAP/Juveniles £12.00
Juveniles (U11) £6.00
All Disabled Areas £20.00
Helpers FREE OF CHARGE
To book tickets for forthcoming matches simply phone the Oakwell Box Office on 01226 211200. Alternatively call at the Box Office in person; contact the Box Office by fax on 01226 211444 or e-mail
boxoffice@barnsleyfc.co.uk. Please note that Juvenile U11 tickets must be purchased in advance from the Oakwell Box Office and this price will not be on sale on the turnstiles under any circumstances.
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