Barnsley will travel to Doncaster on Saturday afternoon hoping to kick on as the season approaches a busy fixtures period, and the South Yorkshire club will be hoping to regain some much-needed form in a local derby.
The Tykes manager, Danny Wilson, will be quietly confident that his side can gain maximum points at the Keepmoat Stadium, a result that could improve this seasons possible play-off hopes.
Wilson’s side are currently sat in 16th position in League One following last year’s relegation from the Championship, but the instant return to the second tier looks far from likely at the moment, after recent poor showings domestically.
Despite having top players like, Ross Turnbull, Leroy Lita, Kane Hemmings and Dale Jennings at his disposal this campaign, Wilson has so far failed to get them firing on all cylinders so far this term.
Jennings and Turnbull were squad players at Chelsea and Bayern Munich once upon a time, so the Tykes’ faithful will be hopeful that both can contribute towards them picking up some vital points early in the New Year before they fall too far behind.
Championship chance
Although Barnsley have had an indifferent beginning to their life in League One, all is not lost as the club currently sit only seven points off the play-off positions, giving slight hope to their promotion bid.
With the top three sides, Swindon Town, Bristol City and MK Dons over 20 points ahead at the moment at the league's summit, a return to the Championship through the automatic promotion places looks virtually impossible for Wilson and his struggling side.
However, the play-off system certainly gives Barnsley a chance at an instant return to the division, and at 27/10 odds with Betsafe to topple Doncaster, they are perhaps worth a punt in their latest outing as they near a winnable set of games in the fixture list.
The two sides met at Oakwell just a month ago and played out a 1-1 draw with goals coming from Lewin Nyatanga and Theo Robinson. It was a third consecutive meeting that ended in stalemate between the Yorkshire pair.
Last time out at the Keepmoat was last season’s 2-2 draw in the Championship, with James Coppinger’s brace overturning Nick Proschwitz’s opener before the on-loan German equalised in the last minute.
Rovers have won 14 of the 33 meetings between the two sides in Doncaster with Barnsley victorious in nine of the encounters. Rovers’ biggest recent home win over the Reds came a decade ago with a 4-0 triumph in League One with goals from Gregg Blundell, John Doolan and Paul Green.
The Tykes manager, Danny Wilson, will be quietly confident that his side can gain maximum points at the Keepmoat Stadium, a result that could improve this seasons possible play-off hopes.
Wilson’s side are currently sat in 16th position in League One following last year’s relegation from the Championship, but the instant return to the second tier looks far from likely at the moment, after recent poor showings domestically.
Despite having top players like, Ross Turnbull, Leroy Lita, Kane Hemmings and Dale Jennings at his disposal this campaign, Wilson has so far failed to get them firing on all cylinders so far this term.
Jennings and Turnbull were squad players at Chelsea and Bayern Munich once upon a time, so the Tykes’ faithful will be hopeful that both can contribute towards them picking up some vital points early in the New Year before they fall too far behind.
Championship chance
Although Barnsley have had an indifferent beginning to their life in League One, all is not lost as the club currently sit only seven points off the play-off positions, giving slight hope to their promotion bid.
With the top three sides, Swindon Town, Bristol City and MK Dons over 20 points ahead at the moment at the league's summit, a return to the Championship through the automatic promotion places looks virtually impossible for Wilson and his struggling side.
However, the play-off system certainly gives Barnsley a chance at an instant return to the division, and at 27/10 odds with Betsafe to topple Doncaster, they are perhaps worth a punt in their latest outing as they near a winnable set of games in the fixture list.
The two sides met at Oakwell just a month ago and played out a 1-1 draw with goals coming from Lewin Nyatanga and Theo Robinson. It was a third consecutive meeting that ended in stalemate between the Yorkshire pair.
Last time out at the Keepmoat was last season’s 2-2 draw in the Championship, with James Coppinger’s brace overturning Nick Proschwitz’s opener before the on-loan German equalised in the last minute.
Rovers have won 14 of the 33 meetings between the two sides in Doncaster with Barnsley victorious in nine of the encounters. Rovers’ biggest recent home win over the Reds came a decade ago with a 4-0 triumph in League One with goals from Gregg Blundell, John Doolan and Paul Green.