DARRELL Clarke is looking forward to facing his hometown club Mansfield Town tonight from 8pm in the first game of the season.
Clarke is from Mansfield and came through the Stags’ youth system before playing more than 150 first team games between 1995 and 2001.
They have been the opponents in significant games in his career – relegating his Bristol Rovers out of the EFL in 2013 then being beaten by his Port Vale side in 2022. The Stags took the third automatic promotion place in League Two last season, reaching the third tier for the first time since 2003 – having had a spell in non-league football.
Clarke told the Chronicle: “There’s an emotional attachment to the club and the town. It was my dream to play for my hometown club. I was there from ten to 23. My granddad was a steward there.
“I was born in the town.
“There are a lot of connections but that all goes aside.
“I played them in the play-off final not so long ago. I want to win but I am very respectful of the team, manager and fans.
“They are very experienced and I think they will be more than fine this season.
“I think the three teams who have come up are strong. I expect Mansfield to have a good solid season.”
The third tier this season is expected to be better than last season, with big-spending clubs coming up and down.
Clarke said: “League One will be the most competitive for a few years.
“There are different pressures. Some clubs are ex-Premier League. Some clubs are coming up with the financial clout to do very well.
“For the clubs who have come down, the shirt can weight heavy.
“Birmingham and Huddersfield need to get out of the league. But so do a lot of other clubs like ourselves.
“We understand the difficulties of the league but the focus has to be on us.”
The Reds are hoping for promotion after back-to-back play-off losses.
“We will go game by game. We analyse the good and bad of each game.
“No titles are won on the first day or even this year.
“Some of my teams haven’t had good starts then got promoted.
“We want a good start. The key is performances are improving because, if they do, results take care of themselves.”
Mansfield’s manager Nigel Clough – who has managed in more than 1,000 games – has faced Barnsley 18 times with four losses, ten draws and four defeats. Mansfield are very experienced with several players in their 30s, many of whom have been regulars in the Championship such as striker Lee Gregory, midfielder Stephen Quinn and defender Aden Flint.
The clubs have met 35 times, with the Reds winning 14 and losing ten.
Their only meetings since 1980 were in the 2002/03 season when both games finished as 1-0 away wins.
Brian O’Callaghan got the winner in Mansfield after Andy White stunned Oakwell earlier in the season.
Mansfield have won three of their 17 visits to Barnsley, losing eight.
The Stags have several ex-Reds in their squad but many will miss the game. Forwards George Maris and Rhys Oates, now both in their late 20s, came through the Oakwell academy and played briefly for the first team but are out injured.
Right-back George Williams, now 31, helped Barnsley to promotion in 2016 before leaving that summer. He joined Mansfield last summer – after spells at MK Dons, Bristol Rovers and Cambridge – and was mainly a back-up, starting nine games. Goalkeeper Scott Flinders, who came through the Oakwell academy and played 14 games before leaving in 2006, is now 38 and did not play a league game last season but was handed a new contract.
On Tuesday, the Reds are due to visit Wigan Athletic in the EFL Cup from 7.45pm.
