Analysis of Barnsley's 1-1 draw at Cambridge United. The hosts scored an early opener but Stephen Humphrys levelled with a superb individual goal.
MAGICAL HUMPHRYS LEVELLER
HUMPS for 500 yards. Humps for 400 yards. Humps for 300 yards. That is the wording on a series of signs on the road adjacent to Cambridge’s ground.
Barnsley’s Stephen Humphrys – nicknamed ‘Humps’ – may not quite have run that far for his remarkable equaliser, but it almost felt like it.
The forward had actually had a frustrating start to the game, booked for hauling down a home player after losing the ball, and also passing straight out of play – while the Reds in general made a sloppy start and went 1-0 down.
But he is a player who can provide magical, rousing moments out of nothing and he certainly did so on 17 minutes.
The goal came from a Cambridge corner which they took short then James Brophy’s dangerous cross went across the face of goal before Josh Earl headed away then Jon Russell hacked clear. Adam Phillips challenged for a header then played a clever short pass to Humphrys who, along with Davis Keillor-Dunn, was suddenly through with just one defender back.
Despite his team-mate being in space to his right, Humphrys took the ball from within his half to just inside the home box, outpacing Liam Bennett, then smashed inside the left post.
The five touches he took during that run were almost a quarter of the 22 he made throughout the whole match. But he put them to good use as he set up Phillips for one of a series of second half chances and saw a long-range shot fumbled onto the crossbar by the goalkeeper, and had another saved before Russell’s follow-up was controversially ruled out.
Humphrys now has two goals in his last two games and is on four in the league, only behind Phillips.
His goal was the first Barnsley scored in their pink third kit, having lost the previous three games in it by an aggregate of 7-0, with all the goals in the second halves.
NWAKALI MAKES STRONG CLAIM FOR START
Kelechi Nwakali came on for the injured Max Watters after seven minutes and, other than Humphrys for his goal, was the most eye-catching player on the pitch.
The Nigerian international’s only previous league appearance had been an injury-time cameo at Shrewsbury last month, as he was gradually being brought up to full fitness.
He had good moments in under 21 games and EFL Trophy matches but there were question marks over whether he was ready for the tempo and physicality of League One. Playing on a poor pitch in cold conditions is very different to the top flights of Spain and Portugal. But Nwakali was excellent in the holding midfield role, making the most passes with 89 per cent accuracy, despite constantly trying ambitious balls to unlock Cambridge. He also made the most tackles and showed ball control and poise which is a cut above the usual League One player.
He could not have done much more to stake a claim to start the next game but with Luca Connell – whose set pieces were missed in this game - back from suspension, Darrell Clarke has plenty of players to pick from in that position.
Nwakali’s introduction also seemed to make the Reds more balanced as a team. Barnsley did not replace Connell with a fellow midfielder – with Matty Craig now getting very little gametime – but instead changed to a 3-4-3. Humphrys and Davis Keillor-Dunn played wide of Watters in a front three while Russell and Phillips, who had excelled in attacking midfield, were paired together as a holding two. We will never know how that team would have played together because it only lasted seven minutes, but they were poor in that short time, and when they changed to 3-5-2 many more players were back in positions they looked comfortable with.
UNBEATEN IN FIVE BUT SHOULD HAVE BEEN ANOTHER WIN
Cambridge, under ex-Red Garry Monk, had won five games in a row without conceding before being thrashed 6-1 at local rivals Peterborough a week before this match.
They were third-bottom, four points off safety, but had won their last three at home in all competitions without conceding.
The number of first team squad members they were missing due to injuries and international call-ups was into double figures. Six of their starting 11 were in their 30s and they had more than 1,000 Championship appearances between them – more than double Barnsley’s total.
Barnsley were favourites to win, which would have been a fourth in a row at Cambridge. But they made a very poor start and, once they got level and controlled the second half, missed some big chances.
In the end, they were the better side overall and it was, by and large, another decent performance which stretched their unbeaten league run to five games.
They slipped down a place in the league table to fifth and missed the chance to reduce the gap to the top two, leaving them frustrated in the dressing room.
They also missed out on a sixth win out of eight away games this season but 16 points is still a fantastic tally at this stage.
BARNSLEY SLOPPY EARLY ON
Barnsley were poor in the first half. They conceded a terrible early goal and looked weak from set pieces while they regularly lost the ball near their box. It looked as though they were struggling to get to grips with a very poor pitch.
The opening goal was unlucky but also poor defending by Mael de Gevigney. After a long throw was half-cleared, he had an attempted clearance blocked in the box by Brophy then allowed Dan Nlundulu to round him far too easily and hit a shot which looked to be going across the face of goal but hit Russell and went in. It was the first time Barnsley had conceded in the first half of an away league game this season.
De Gevigney – who scored a bizarre own goal against Cambridge at Oakwell in March - had a particularly poor start, with a foul throw as well, but grew into the game. He formed a solid back three with Josh Earl and stand-in captain Marc Roberts who, for the second successive game, made a massive 15 clearances.
The Reds improved throughout the half but were lucky not to concede again as Michael Morrison headed against the left post.
POOR FINISHING COSTS TWO POINTS
Barnsley finished the first half strongly then dominated the majority of the second. They controlled long spells, had almost all of the ball and began to open up a stubborn home defence.
Ultimately they were thwarted by poor finishing.
Phillips – who was not quite at his best – fired wide of the bottom left corner just inside the box, after being put through by Humphrys, then headed off target from a Corey O’Keeffe cross. Davis Keillor-Dunn – another attacker who had a quiet game, especially in the first hour – met a powerful O’Keeffe cross five yards out unmarked with the goal gaping but the ball hit his shoulder and went over.
Russell had the ball in the net when – after a clever corner routine and a scramble – Humphrys’ shot was saved and the Jamaica international turned in but the flag was up. Clarke said afterwards it was a ‘very very close’ call which could have gone either way. The Reds boss also felt, after some time-wasting by the hosts, there should have been more than two minutes added time – a very low number in modern games.
