McKenna: Barnsley Will Go at Us With Everything Monday, 24th Apr 2023 11:52 Town face Barnsley at Oakwell on Tuesday night aiming to move another step closer to automatic promotion from League One. The Blues, second, a point behind leaders Plymouth and one in front of Sheffield Wednesday, the Owls having played a game more than their rivals, need five points from their final three matches to secure a place in the Championship after four years away. While Wednesday aren't in action this evening, the Pilgrims host Bristol Rovers. Barnsley are fourth, six points behind Town with a significantly worse goal difference, but still in with a mathematical chance of making the top two. The Tykes go into the game, which was originally set to be played in February but was postponed due to international calls, in a run of form similar to the Blues, having lost only two of their last 19, winning 14. At home, they have won their last nine, scoring 28 times over the course of those fixtures. Boss Kieran McKenna says the South Yorkshiremen will treat the match as if they’re still very much in the hunt for an automatic place. “I think they’re going to go with everything on Tuesday night, there’s no doubt about that, but Peterborough were the same, they came at us with everything,” he said following Saturday’s win at London Road, the Blues’ 11th victory in their last 12. “They changed shape, they went different than they usually do and we faced a really determined Peterborough side. “We’re going to have the same on Tuesday. It’s a massive game for Barnsley, but it’s a massive game for us in the dressing room. “We know how hard we’ve worked and I trust the players to continue to do that.”  Is it better to be playing teams desperately needing all three points rather than those with less to play for who might just sit in to claim a point? “You can never tell at this stage of the season,” McKenna reflected. “It’s going to be a really, really difficult game, there’s no doubt about that. Peterborough was a really, really difficult game. “At this stage of the season, it’s a cliché, but every game is difficult. Even if you’re playing a team who don’t have anything to play for in terms of points, they can play with a bit more freedom and expression. “And when you’re playing teams who are fighting for points, everyone’s desperate to get where they want to be. Every game’s tough and Tuesday is not going to be any different.”
Town will be up against a familiar face with former striker James Norwood having joined the Tykes last summer. “We saw him earlier in the season, of course, and keep in touch with the odd text message,” he said. “Someone I enjoyed working with, did a really good job for us in the second half of last season and it’s good to see him still playing well for Barnsley this year. “He’s a really good goalscorer, no doubt about that, and as a staff we enjoyed working with him and had no real doubts that he would go on and be a good forward for someone else this year, and he’s done that.” McKenna will probably look to stick with what’s become his first-choice XI for their toughest remaining fixture, but may be forced into a change or two due to fatigue or knocks, although none were reported following Saturday’s game. Christian Walton, who took his League One clean sheet tally to 21 at the weekend, will be in goal with Harry Clarke set to be on the right of the defence with Luke Woolfenden and Cameron Burgess in the middle. Leif Davis, fresh from being named in the League One Team of the Season, will be on the left with Wes Burns providing the width on the right. In midfield, skipper Sam Morsy will be joined by Massimo Luongo, while 26-goal top scorer Conor Chaplin, also in the Team of the Season, will be partnered by Nathan Broadhead in the number 10 roles. Chaplin needs only one goal to match Daryl Murphy’s 2014/15 total of 27, although all the Irishman’s strikes were in the league, while the current Town forward has hit three of his in cups. George Hirst looks set to keep his place as the central striker but with Freddie Ladapo, who took his goals tally to 20 at Posh, an alternative and otherwise likely to come off the bench in the second half. Town broke the 90-point barrier for the first time in their history via Saturday's win at Peterborough, having already achieved a record points total since three points for a win was introduced, their previous best was 87 in 1999/00. The Blues will take their league wins to 27 if they're victorious at Oakwell, equalling a record previously achieved in the 1953/54 Division Three South title-winning season.
Barnsley have midfielder Nicky Cadden back from a ban and have no injuries going into the match. Skipper Mads Andersen was named alongside Davis and Chaplin in the League One Team of the Season. Manager Michael Duff, who took charge at Oakwell in June last year, admits it’s difficult to select his side at present. “This is probably the hardest team I have had to pick going into it, which is good as we have got a good squad of players,” he told the Yorkshire Post. “It is tough to get in the XI at the minute. “It is a game with two good teams and the place should be bouncing. There's good problems to have, but tough ones as we need to pick the right team. “There's quite a few in the last few weeks - people like Boban [Tedic] and Ziyad [Larkeche], who have put their hand up and said ‘I'm ready’, which is all I can ask for. “It's a brilliant game and the one that everyone wants to be involved in. They are bringing 5,000 and are statistically the best team in League One history. “It is a data-run club and we get quite a lot of data on the opposition. They are not top of the league, but statistically the best in League One history.” Regarding former Blue Norwood, he added: “It doesn’t take a lot to get him going, but he’ll want to play in this one, I imagine — it’s his old club. “Without having a point to prove, I know there’s a little bit of fire in him that he wants to get another promotion, as we all do.” “I think I’ve probably said it four or five times already; they’ll all want to play in this one.” Historically, Town have done well against the South Yorkshiremen, winning 24 games between the sides (23 in the league), drawing 11 (11) and losing 13 (11). At Portman Road in August, Chaplin and Morsy were on target but Town were held to a 2-2 draw by the Tykes with a third Blues goal scored by sub Marcus Harness having been harshly disallowed. Chaplin curled home a brilliant free-kick on 27 but Jack Aitchison levelled for the Tykes six minutes later before Davis had what looked a decent penalty shout turned down just before the break. Morsy restored the Blues’ lead on 70 but, after Harness’s goal had been ruled out, Callum Styles grabbed a point for the visitors on 75 with Town, who dropped to second in the table, going close on a number of occasions late on with George Edmundson hitting the post. The teams most recently met at Oakwell in August 2017 when half-time subs David McGoldrick and Martyn Waghorn scored the goals which saw Town come from a goal behind to win 2-1. Tom Bradshaw put the Tykes in front in the 15th minute but, after a reshuffle at the break, McGoldrick volleyed home an equaliser on 53 and league debutant Waghorn sealed the three points in the 70th minute as Town recorded three wins in their opening three games of a season for the first time since 2002/03. The sides most famously met at Wembley in the 2000 First Division play-off final when the Blues won 4-2 to claim a place in the Premier League with Tony Mowbray, Richard Naylor, Marcus Stewart and Martijn Reuser the scorers. Striker Norwood joined the Tykes having been released by the Blues after three years last summer, after a move to Bristol Rovers broke down. Norwood, who moved to Town on a free transfer from Tranmere in the summer of 2019, scored 28 goals in 57 starts and 29 sub appearances while with the Blues. For the Tykes, he has hit 10 goals in 30 starts and 13 sub appearances. Winger Luke Thomas was on loan with Town from Barnsley in the second half of 2019/20 but made only four starts and one sub appearance before taking some time away from the game for the sake of his “mental and physical health”. Former Blues right-back Barry Cotter joined Barnsley from Shamrock Rovers in his native Ireland in January. Cotter made three starts and one sub appearance while with the Blues between January 2018 and March 2021. Coincidentally, the former Limerick man’s only league appearance for Town was in the 1-0 victory over Barnsley at Portman Road in April 2018, Mick McCarthy’s last game in charge. Cotter has made three sub appearances for the Tykes. Forward Chaplin joined Town from Barnsley in the summer of 2021 following two years at Oakwell in which he made 73 starts and 13 sub appearances, scoring 17 times. Blues captain Morsy was on loan with the Tykes during the first half of 2016/17, making 12 starts and two sub appearances. Town frontman Kayden Jackson spent the whole of 2016/17 at Oakwell without making a senior appearance. Tuesday’s referee is Ben Toner from Lancashire, who has shown 107 yellow cards and three red in his 35 games so far this season. Toner’s last Town game was the 1-0 defeat at Wycombe in December in which he booked four Chairboys and no Blues. He was also in charge of the 1-0 win at Burton in August in which he cautioned Edmundson, Greg Leigh and one Brewer. Prior to that he was in middle for the 2-1 defeat at Peterborough in February 2021 in which he booked Flynn Downes and Andre Dozzell. Toner also refereed the 4-1 home victory over Tranmere in September 2019 in which he yellow-carded Norwood and two of the visitors. His only other Blues match was the 1-0 FA Cup replay defeat at Lincoln City in January 2017 in which he cautioned Jonathan Douglas and two home players. Squad from: Walton, Hladky, Clarke, Donacien, Woolfenden, Keogh, Burgess, Burns, Jackson, Vincent-Young, Davis, Leigh, Morsy, Luongo, Ball, Humphreys, Camara, Chaplin, Broadhead, Harness, Edwards, Aluko, Ladapo, Hirst.
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