Darrell Clarke admits Barnsley were ‘all over the shop’ early in their home loss to Mansfield and that the missed chances reinforced the need to recruit strikers.
The Reds went 2-0 down early on then Clarke changed from 3-5-2 to a 4-4-2 diamond. They pulled one back but lost 2-1.
Clarke told the Chronicle: “We were all over the shop in the early part. We worked on a gameplan of how to hurt them and never got any control in the first 20 minutes.
“They were coming through us way too easy. It was very frustrating.
“That has cost the game. The change I made helped us get a foothold then we missed a lot of chances.
“We will review it then move onto the next game. I am learning about the group. You learn more in a competitive game. You see one or two who make wrong decisions under pressure and people who can perform under pressure. It’s the most consistent perfumers who will move us forward.
Jon Russell came on for debutant Georgie Gent after 25 minutes. Clarke said: “Georgie did nothing wrong. It’s just a shame. They were overrunning our midfield. We had done work on that but it didn’t materialise so it needed to be changed. Once we made the change we were in control for the game apart from the last ten or 15 minutes when we looked a little bit desperate.”
Max Watters and Sam Cosgrove, who started up front, each missed big chances. Clarke said: “We need strikers and that hasn’t changed since I came into the building. It’s not just the strikers’ responsibility to score goals. Other players had good chances as well.
“To get ourselves at the top end of the division you have to be clinical. I genuinely believe that, if we got the next goal, we could maybe have gone on and won it.
“Sam and Max put in great shifts. They missed chances but worked hard and created problems. It’s not all doom and gloom we just need a couple more to add competition.”
Connell scored his first goal at Oakwell after being announced as captain. Clarke said: “Luca is a fantastic player, I am a little bit concerned he was cramping up at the end, I can’t afford to lose good players with injuries. It was a precaution but I was desperate to keep him on. His individual performance was good.”
The Reds have not won in their last eight home games. He said: “It’s very disappointing to lose our first game here. Our home form is going to be vital. But we won’t get too carried away early on. I have had three promotions and in those seasons we didn’t win the opening game. Hopefully that’s a good thing. We wanted to win and thank fans for their support and welcoming me to the club. Hopefully we have better nights than we did tonight.”
