Terrific Thomas settles tight game as Duff’s Oakwell tenure begins with crucial victory
MICHAEL Duff’s introduction to the majority of Barnsley fans was a happy one as his side narrowly beat Cheltenham.
The head coach said at the start of the season that there was an air of inevitability about an early clash with his former employers, with whom he won a League Two title and developed a reputation as one of the EFL’s brightest young managers. Perhaps less inevitable was his side’s beating of the Robins given their poor opening day and lingering question marks over whether they’ve brought in enough new recruits of the required quality.
It was not a perfect performance but there was enough here – particularly in the outstanding display of goal-scorer Luke Thomas – to at least temporarily stave off any major concerns.
Thomas’s 66th-minute strike from the edge of the box, after picking up a loose ball from Alfie May, was the midfielder’s reward for a tireless display of running – with and without the ball – as he grew into his role as Barnsley’s major attacking fulcrum behind the two strikers.
It was his first start for Barnsley since January last year and Thomas celebrated, and played, with all the fire and pent-up energy you would expect. He had not scored a league goal in 92 games across three years, since netting on his Barnsley debut in another first Oakwell match of the season and another 1-0 win – against Fulham in the Championship in 2019.
The Reds’ new head coach Duff began his playing career at the Robins, scoring the goal that took them into the Football League in 1999, and ended a four-year stint at their helm when he moved to Barnsley ahead of this season.
The owners clearly thought he could replicate his success in Gloucestershire 150 miles up the M1, but the side’s poor performance in the 1-0 loss at Plymouth Argyle made clear how hard a job he has.
It’s very early in the season, but fans were already airing concerns that sizable holes in the squad – at full-back, centre midfield and most notably up front – are not being filled.
Duff has said the opener at Plymouth taught him more about his side than weeks of pre-season training, and also admitted he’s still to fully get to know the players at his disposal – but he will be aware of where there’s a serious need to strengthen. Callum Styles and Michal Helik look likely to follow wing-back Callum Brittain out of the door, which will further weaken an already questionable spine in the side while leaving their defence – centre midfielder Styles arguably had his best season at left wing-back – bereft of options should injury, suspension or poor form strike.
Perhaps a calm, patient head is exactly what’s needed from the boss at this stage of the season – but after last season’s implosion, the Reds’ fans would’ve hoped for a little more of the rebuilding project to have taken place before the first ball was kicked.
Instead, in this first home fixture, they watched a side often struggle to click together but still gain a vital victory.
In some ways Thomas, who’s been a peripheral figure for much of his three years at Barnsley, needed this performance to justify his own place in the side, as did the similarly industrious and impressive Josh Benson behind him. Those kinds of individual displays can win games, but a team is more than just 11 individuals and needs something to hold all the parts together – something which Duff reflected on after the final whistle.
“We want to create a learning environment, not an individual environment,” he said.
“We’ve got some good players, but they need to come together as a group. “Winning breeds confidence.
“Luke Thomas will be much better for that. He’s had a tough couple of years here, he’s done well at other places. “The staff and the players have to build a bond and a trust.
“The players and supporters have to build the same trust and try to get everyone’s noses pointing in the right direction.” In a fairly low-profile opening few minutes, James Norwood, Jack Aitchison and Thomas – who started his career at Cheltenham Town and is desperately looking to restart his faltering time with the Reds – showed some good movement to stretch the Robins’ defence, but supply was lacking.
Thomas was one of three changes to the line-up that lost at Plymouth, alongside Norwood and centre-back Conor McCarthy who made full debuts.
Duff said the introduction of Thomas was due to his midfield of Callum Styles, Luca Connell and Josh Benson looking ‘samey’ at Plymouth, and the 23-year-old’s ability to carry the ball into dangerous areas. He also called that first fixture a ‘wake-up call’ and has put across to his players the need to run faster, harder and further than the opposition – which, when your side might lack cutting edge, can indeed be the difference between losing, drawing or winning.
Jordan Williams had a good opportunity to cross in the early exchanges but wasn’t able to find a way through, then Dan Nlundulu had the best chance of the first ten minutes for the visitors but his limp effort was wide of the far post.
A decent chance fell to Styles 17 minutes in, Thomas driving forward with the ball and finding Norwood who produced a neat flick for Liam Kitching, who frequently advanced from his centre-back position and often made overlapping runs out wide. But the Hungarian international wasn’t able to get a clean shot away.
Norwood had an effort deflected for a corner five minutes later, then Aitchison played a neat onetwo with Thomas and will wonder how ‘keeper Luke Southwood kept his low strike out.
Elliot Bonds had a crack from long-range following a corner just after the half-hour mark, but it was comfortably held by Brad Collins.
Nicky Cadden limped off with a tight calf with eight minutes of the first half to go, Styles moving to left wing-back and Connell coming back into the midfield.
A few minutes from half-time, Josh Benson tried his luck from a free-kick but his powerful effort hit a man in the wall, rounding off a fairly nondescript first half.
Benson tried to capitalise on a sustained period of pressure as the Reds came out flying for the second half, the midfielder having a crack from the edge of the box 50 minutes in.
Mads Andersen followed it up and knocked it past Southwood, but the centre-back was deemed to be offside, then Kitching headed over the bar from Connell’s cross.
As the Reds continued to press high, Andersen played a neat one-touch pass out to Styles who dribbled past his man and fired over from the left of the box.
Cheltenham have been tipped to struggle this season and for a significant passage of play, the home side looked content to let them aimlessly pass the ball around non-threatening areas.
But on the hour-mark, Liam Sercombe was able to let fly from outside the box, his shot hitting
May who, four minutes later, lifted George Lloyd’s cross over the bar from a few yards out.
The home fans needed something to cheer, and the mood was indeed lifted as the sun began to shine on Oakwell.
After scoring, Barnsley saw out the latter stages in a composed fashion, a late diagonal run by Kitching from his own half into the opposition box – where he sent a right-footed effort over the bar – providing the last bit of excitement for the near-10,000 Reds fans in attendance.
Barnsley (3-4-1-2): Collins, mark out of ten, 7; Kitching 7, McCarthy 7, Andersen 7; Williams, (Connell 37), Styles 6, Benson 8, Cadden 6; Thomas 8 (Hondermarck 88); Aitchison 7 (Marsh 61), Norwood 7 (Cole 61). Unused: Walton, Moon, Cundy. Goals: Thomas, 66.
Cheltenham (3-5-2): Southwood; Long, Taylor, Raglan (Brown 73); Freestone, Perry (Ebanks 73), Bonds (Adshead 56), Sercombe, Jackson; Nlundulu (Lloyd 56), May. Unused: Chapman, MacDonald, Horton. Yellow cards: Long, Sercombe, Bonds, Adshead.
Referee: Carl Brook (Sussex).
Attendance: 10,289 (413 away).