GRAYSON COULD TEMPT TOILING TYKES...
YORKSHIRE stalwart Simon Grayson is the frontrunner for the vacant manager’s position at Barnsley.
The former Leeds and Huddersfield chief left Bradford in midweek, having taken over in February, and is the bookies’ favourite to replace Jose Morais.
Morais departed immediately after the Tykes’ 4-1 defeat to Derby, which condemned them to League One, activating a relegation clause in the Portuguese boss’ contract.
Grayson, 48, turned down the chance to extend his deal at Valley Parade and is currently ranked ahead of former Ipswich boss Mick McCarthy and former Barnsley defender Bobby Hassell in the betting stakes.
Meanwhile, Paul Heckingbottom, who left Barnsley to join Leeds in February, just days after penning a new rolling contract at Oakwell, says that he did not enjoy seeing his old club go down.
“Yeah, I’m gutted,” said the Leeds manager. “I’m upset. It’s not nice to see them get relegated.
“I thought they’d got themselves in a great position with their win (against Brentford) and it’s just strange how it pans out that all the teams at the bottom are playing the teams fighting for something at the top barring the team who stayed up – Bolton.
“That’s why this stage of the season can be heartbreaking.”
Barnsley are reportedly set to offer new deals to two first-team players that are out of contract, winger Adam Hammill and Ghana full-back Andy Yiadom.
Hammill, 30, has made 198 appearances for the Tykes while 26-year-old Yiadom has previously been the subject of Premier League interest,
Goalkeeper Nick Townsend, 23, and 31-yearold defender Matt Mills are set to be released.