Analysis of Barnsley's 4-3 home win over Lincoln City on Saturday. After Davis Keillor-Dunn, Adam Phillips, Georgie Gent and Max Watters put the Reds 4-1 up, they conceded twice late on.
BARNSLEY COMPLETE SUPERB WEEK WITH THRILLER
LINCOLN’S last two visits to Oakwell have been extraordinary games.
While last season’s 5-1 thrashing, almost exactly a year ago, started a downward spiral as their promotion challenge tanked, this narrow win kept them in the fight for the play-offs.
This time it was Lincoln being booed from the field – at half-time – as their season looks to have fizzled out into a mid-table trudge while Barnsley’s still has a chance of ending in glory.
The victory – which was much closer than expected at 4-1 with a few minutes left – was the third of an excellent week as Barnsley showed huge character to come back from a six-game winless streak and cut the gap to sixth from ten points to four.
In front of part-owners the Cryne family and Julie Anne Quay in the directors’ box, this was probably the best overall performance of the week, with some impressive attacking play at times, although the final 15 minutes was extremely poor.
REDS IMPRESS IN ATTACK
For most of the game, the main story was the performance of Barnsley’s attacking players. The Reds were clinical – with all five of their shots being on target and four of them finding the net.
Lincoln were very poor – with ex-Red Adam Jackson giving the ball away for the first two goals – but the hosts took advantage of that expertly.
Davis Keillor-Dunn was unplayable, rattling the Imps not only with his outstanding 14th goal of the season – which opened the scoring – but his pressing which led to the second. He is at the top of his game and completed 91 per cent of his passes including some deft touches to open up the visiting defence.
Adam Phillips moved into double figures for goals for a third successive season which, along with similar assist numbers, marks him out as a remarkable midfielder at this level.
Those two – and Stephen Humphrys whose goalless run went on but he once again impressed with his movement and running on the ball – combined brilliantly to set up the third goal, scored by left wing-back Georgie Gent with his first in English football.
After Lincoln pulled one back and had a good spell, substitute Max Watters added a fourth against the run of play which should have finished the contest.
It was Watters’ sixth of the season and came from a good assist by Josh Benson who registered a first goal contribution in 17 months since a 4-0 win at Cambridge in October 2023.
Watters’ name – albeit a mispronounced version – was sung throughout the second half to the tune of Billy Joel’s We Didn’t Start The Fire. The lyrics were: ‘We didn’t sign a striker, but it doesn’t matter ‘cos we’ve got Max Watters.’
SILLY ERRORS LEAD TO ANOTHER NERVY FINISH
Barnsley were 4-1 up on 84 minutes but were holding on to a one-goal lead in injury-time. The Reds conceded their 18th and 19th goals after 75 minutes this season, while 27 of their 47 against have come after the hour-mark, and they nearly added to the 17 points lost from winning positions.
They had eight players out as Neil Farrugia was the latest injury absence with two of their top three appearance-makers this season suspended in Mael de Gevigney and captain Luca Connell. Three of their substitutes were development players who had never played in the EFL.
Barnsley had been down to Northampton on Tuesday whereas Lincoln had no midweek game so were likely to finish stronger, although they were gifted their route back into the contest.
It is understandable that, during a period run of games, with a big one at Charlton on Tuesday, Clarke would look to give key men some time off the pitch when three goals ahead.
Two subs combined for fourth goal but the others struggled.
Dexter Lembikisa - who came on at half-time because Corey O’Keeffe was on a booking and looking ‘leggy’ according to Clarke - lost the ball often and was defensively very weak.
Striker Clement Rodrigues came on after 82 minutes and badly struggled to hold the ball up, at one point passing to the visiting goalkeeper as the Frenchman looked panicked and lost. Lembikisa and Rodrigues, as January window signings, have added very little so far while the others were all injured.
Coming on with Rodrigues, for the injured Gent, was league debutant Connor Barratt who signed in the summer from Sheffield United. The defender, 20, was at fault for the final goal as he was easily beaten then headed straight to the goal-scorer Jovon Makama.
Gent – who came in for Farrugia – had made a big error for the 3-1 goal, while Lincoln’s second saw them open the hosts up from a throw-in on halfway with Josh Earl badly outpaced by speedy sub Reeco Hackett.
They were indebted to home debutant Jackson Smith in goal who made a one-on-one save at 4-2, following a bad Lembikisa error, at the end of the 90 minutes while there were some scary crosses at 4-3.
The ending of the match made the atmosphere far less triumphant and left the Reds frustrated but – just like in Northampton after a similar late wobble – they deserve credit for hanging onto the three points however they did it.
HOME WIN NEEDS TO SPARK STRONG FINISH AT OAKWELL
The Reds had won just four of 16 home games this season with a point and a goal from their previous three.
But they secured a rare win at Oakwell and, for 75 minutes, produced one of their better performance there across a tough last year.
Home form has been the obvious missing piece in Barnsley’s season and, if they can have an extremely good finish there while maintaining their strong away form, they will challenge for the top six.
They now host Blackpool, Cambridge, Exeter, Bolton, Peterborough and Shrewsbury in the remainder of the season. All of those teams, except Bolton, are below the Reds currently while most are still battling relegation. There is an opportunity to collect a lot of points on their own turf.
HUGE GAME AT CHARLTON UP NEXT
Barnsley are now due to visit the team they are trying to catch on Tuesday when they play at sixth-placed Charlton Athletic.
A win could cut the gap to a point but defeat would increase it to seven – with both depending on other results.
Charlton are one of the form teams in the division, having won ten of their last 14 games. They netted twice in injury-time at fellow London club Leyton Orient on Saturday to overtake their neighbours in the play-offs with a 2-1 win.
Nathan Jones’ side are unbeaten in nine at The Valley, with the only goal they have conceded there in the last six being a penalty.
If Barnsley win there, then we can start getting really excited about a comeback promotion push.
