Alex Mowatt said he enjoyed his tap-in opener against Peterborough United on Wednesday as much as his long-range screamers against Plymouth Argyle and Bristol Rovers earlier in the season.
The 23-year-old midfielder slid in from three yards out to put the Reds ahead in a 2-0 Boxing Day win. He said: “I really enjoyed that goal. I haven’t scored many goals like that in my career so it was great to get it.
“The gaffer has been banging on about us timing our runs from midfield and scoring goals. It was good to put us in front then, after that, we dominated and deserved to win.”
Mowatt has been playing with Cameron McGeehan in central midfield but Kenny Dougall’s return in a holding role on Wednesday meant they could both attack more.
“With Kenny in there, he sits and we can go forward into higher areas and get into the box. That’s what happened for my goal.
"We are three good players so there will be competition but we have shown that we can all play together in a three-man midfield. It’s up to the gaffer but every day in training everyone is fighting for positions, not just in midfield. We have a really good squad.”
Mowatt was at fault for Portsmouth’s goal in a 1-1 draw in the previous game at Oakwell on December 15.
“Things like that happen in football. It’s a mistake but you just get on with it. For me, it’s just about not thinking about it and moving on to the next game.”
After winning over Blackpool and Peterborough this week without conceding a goal, Barnsley are fifth in the league ahead of games against fourth-placed Charlton tomorrow and second-placed Luton Town on Tuesday.
“The clean sheets and wins in the last two games have been massively important. Hopefully we can take that into the next two matches which are big as well. If we get good results against Charlton and Luton we will be back in the fight for the top two.
“These are the games we want to play in. It will help us more if we win them, to climb above those teams around us. We have won two in a row now and if we can make it more then we will start climbing up the table. Everyone at the club wants to be in the top two this season but we need to be more consistent.”
