There were no goals in a match at Oakwell for the first time since April 10th, and despite The Reds cracking the post twice in the second half, there would probably have been no goals in this match if they continued playing until April 10th next year!
Barnsley came into this game on the back of three straight victories and were looking to win four in a row for the first time since 2004, but due to a shocking performance by the midfield, and a lack of goal threat upfront this had 0-0 written all over it from the opening minutes.
You cannot really blame Watford. They came into this game on the back of four defeats in six, and they managed to stifle the Reds, certainly on the wings to take a point back to Hertfordshire. They never looked like getting more; indeed they failed to force Luke Steele into a meaningful save, with just a couple of long range efforts all the 26 year old shot-stopper had to deal with. It brought him his fifth clean sheet of the season and the first back to back since March.
With Watford happy to play on the counter, it was up to Barnsley to force the issue. They failed miserably. Adam Hammill, the star of the season so far was bizarrely frozen out of the game by his team-mates insistence to direct the ball down Jim O’Brien’s wing. Still, when Hammill did get on the ball he did not seem in the mood to pass it, often running straight at goal and shooting from crazy distances. That though was still a better option than giving the ball to O’Brien. Seriously what does this guy offer? He has no pace, cannot cross and never once tried to take a man on today. Clearly all you need to do to get into the SPL Team of the Year is stand there moaning and throwing your arms in the air when a team-mate does not pass to you because that is all O’Brien is good for.
It is however, one more good thing about him than either Hugo Colace or Goran Lovre have! Since joining the club two years ago Colace has put in quite a few woeful performances but today’s might just have been the most pathetic. The Argentine got away with his fairy like tackles and general nothingness last season by bagging eight goals (how this got him Player of the Year though still baffles me) but now he is not even scoring he offers absolutely nothing to the team. Granted it was December before he got his first league goal last season but he really should not even be in the side by the time we hit the festive month next week. Sarcastically cheering when one of your own players is substituted is a crass action but the Oakwell faithful should not be lambasted for doing it when Robins finally hauled Colace off after 58 minutes in which he did absolutely nothing but give the ball away whenever he got it.
Then there’s Goran Lovre. He is like the Jim’ll Fix It player because surely he must have won some sort of raffle nobody else knew about to get in the team. What even is his role? According to Robins he plays the link up role between midfield and lone striker in a 4-4-1-1 formation. A bit like Steven Gerrard does for Liverpool….. But whereas Gerrard receives the ball and drives at opposition defences before feeding Fernando Torres, Lovre runs around in circles, constantly watching play rather than getting involved in it and comes across as a bloke who does not even know what planet he is on never mind what position he is supposed to be playing. O’Connor was poor today, and skied a glorious chance in the opening minutes of the second half but he had no help whatsoever from Lovre. The Reds did not look much better though when Paul Hayes replaced him with 20 minutes to go and went 4-4-2.
The main action centred around two fantastic efforts that would have brought goals but for the woodwork. Firstly on 65 minutes, Hammill was fouled right on the edge of the area and the Liverpudlian curled the resultant free kick over the wall but back off the base of the post, before just seconds later the ball broke on the edge of the area where Jacob Butterfield smacked an unstoppable drive that flashed past Watford and England keeper Scott Loach before he saw it but came back off the inside of his left hand post and somehow stayed out.
Those two moments, both in the space of about three minutes were all that got the crowd off their feet- a crowd that was 255 lower than the previous weekend despite tickets being just £15 and was only beaten to the lowest crowd in the Championship today by bottom club Preston.
Next weekend Barnsley defend their 100% record at the Keepmoat Stadium when they travel to Doncaster. The two sides are currently in the top half of the Championship with Rovers two points off the play-offs and Barnsley three. On today’s showing however it is best, for now, to refrain from hailing it a promotion six-pointer…..
Player Ratings:
Luke Steele – Only had a couple of long range efforts to deal with. Another clean sheet will help his confidence. 7
Bobby Hassell – Being asked to play in an unfamiliar left back position due to injures, but honestly you could probably put Bobby in goal and he would do a fine job. Another solid show. 7
Stephen Foster – Won everything in the air but had a tendency to just hoof it. 7
Jason Shackell – Never got beaten. Even when a Watford player got past him, he simply recovered to make a tackle. Top class display. 8
Kieran Trippier – Solid defensively and his passing was good. Will probably be disappointed that he did not get forward as much as he would have liked. 7
Jim O’Brien – Just an abject player. Average at everything. 4
Hugo Colace – Pathetic performance, never looked like wanting to get involved. Subbed. 2
Diego Arismendi – Picked ahead of Butterfield to replace the suspended Doyle and the wrong choice. Did not get the opportunity to showcase his talents and looked very unsure on the ball. 5
Adam Hammill – Incredibly underused by his team-mates. Does have that annoying tendency to ignore everybody else when on the ball, but always looks the most likely scorer, as he proved when his free kick came back off the post. 6.5
Goran Lovre – Does not look like he knows where he is, what he is supposed to be doing or what his position is. Certainly not a linkup man that’s for sure. Subbed. 4
Garry O’Connor – Looked very much alone up top, although he did waste a glorious chance at the start of the second half. It was the only one he got. 5
Substitutions:
Jacob Butterfield (for Colace 58) – Again should have started. Incredibly unlucky not to score when his effort came back off the inside of the post. Brought composure and thought to an otherwise confused midfield. 7
Paul Hayes (for Lovre 70) – Not sure he even got a touch which is not good enough when you have 20 minutes on the pitch. Its still early days but looks nothing like the player who played a key role in the promotion season of 2005-2006. 5
Unused: David Preece, Jeronimo Nuemann, Andy Gray, Steven Bennett, Reuben Noble-Lazarus.
Sponsor’s Man of the Match: Stephen Foster
BarnsleyBoy's Man of the Match: Jason Shackell: I’d give it to Foster’s defensive partner. Shackell was just imperious today.
WATFORD: Loach, A. Taylor, Eustace, M. Taylor, Mariappa, Cowie, Deeney (Sordell 58), Graham, Doyley, McGinn, Mutch.
Subs: Gilmartin, Hodson, Buckley, Jenkins, Bennett, Mingoia.,
Most Impressed by Watford’s: Martin Taylor: Will always be remembered for that tackle that horribly shattered Arsenal’s Eduardo’s leg but had O’Connor in his pocket all game today.
Ref Watch: Graham Salisbury: The best compliment you can give a referee is he was not memorable. Salisbury did not have any major decisions to make but had a good game. 8
Npower Championship results: Saturday 27th November 2010:
BARNSLEY 0-0 Watford
Bristol City 3-0 Sheffield United
Burnley 2-1 Derby
Crystal Palace 1-0 Doncaster
Middlesbrough 2-2 Hull
Preston 0-0 Millwall
QPR 2-1 Cardiff
Reading 0-0 Leeds
Scunthorpe 0-2 Coventry
Barnsley lie in 12th place in the Npower Championship with 26 points from 18 games.
We are 3 points off the Play-Offs, 10 points off the Automatic Promotion Places, 15 points off First place and 6 points above the Relegation Zone.
Up to 27.11.10
Next Up:
At Oakwell:
Npower Championship Matchday Twenty One: Barnsley v Sheffield United Saturday 11th December 2010 Kick-Off 3pm.
Tickets:
Adults - £25.00
Senior Citizens (Over 60) - £13.00
Juveniles (Under 18) - £13.00
Juveniles (Under 12) - £7.00
On The Road:
Npower Championship Matchday Twenty: Doncaster Rovers v Barnsley Saturday 4thDecember 2010
Tickets:
Adults - £23.00
Senior Citizens - £16.00
Young Adults (aged 17-20) - £16.00
Juveniles (aged 12-16) - £13.00
Juveniles (aged eleven and under) - £9.00
Disabled Supporters - Contact the Oakwell Box Office for more information