Conor Hourihane is set for his first home game as permanent Barnsley head coach from 3pm on Monday against EFL Trophy champions Peterborough United who will be looking to secure their safety.
The Reds are 12th in the League One table with three games left, following a 4-3 loss at Leyton Orient on Friday having led 3-1.
They recorded their sixth home league win of the season against Bolton Wanderers last week and are looking for a strong finish at Oakwell with Peterborough then relegated Shrewsbury Town still to visit.
The Posh are 17th, six points clear of the relegation zone and eight behind the Reds, with a game in hand.
They lost in the play-off semi-finals in each of the last two seasons but have been at the other end of the table for most of this campaign.
After some key summer sales, and relying on the youngest squad in the division, they lost star man Kwame Poku to a serious injury for several months.
They won just six of 27 league games between August and February, which left them one place and two points above the relegation zone.
But a seven-game unbeaten run, including four wins, saw them pull clear of the drop fight.
They then lost three out of four – including a 4-0 home defeat to bitter rivals Northampton Town and a 2-1 loss to Birmingham.
They played champions Birmingham again last week at Wembley in the EFL Trophy final and retained the title with a shock 2-0 win.
They drew 1-1 home to promotion-chasing Stockport County on Good Friday.
Hourihane told the Chronicle: “They had a decent result against Stockport. It won’t be easy. They will be confident after the result had against Birmingham at Wembley.
“It’s a home game. I want to create a good atmosphere at home moving forward. We all know about the home record but we had a good win there and I want to build on that.”
Darren Ferguson’s side have conceded 73 league goals this season, which is the second most after lowly Crawley.
They have won just five of their 20 away games so far, collecting 19 points.
The Reds won 3-1 at London Road on the final game of 2024 – thanks to goals by Donovan Pines, Davis Keillor-Dunn and Jon Russell.
The hosts went 2-0 down then pulled one back through a penalty conceded by Conor McCarthy before Harley Mills was sent off for a tackle on Corey O’Keeffe.
This will be the 46th meeting of the clubs, with Barnsley winning 18 and losing 20.
The Posh have won their last three games at Oakwell – on Easter Monday 2022 when both sides were being relegated from the Championship, then to sneak in the League One play-offs on the last day of the following campaign and 3-1 early last season.
Mael de Gevigney can return from suspension for the Reds.
