Barnsley ‘want to be better at home’ and continue good run Reds to visit Port Vale in EFL Trophy
BARNSLEY are hoping to gradually build Oakwell attendances and the supporters’ trust over this season, with Michael Duff admitting their home form must improve.
The Reds are eighth in League One with 27 points from 17 games, one point off the play-offs. They beat hosts Shrewsbury Town 1-0 on Saturday so have won their last three games in all competitions. If they win at home to fourth-bottom MK Dons tomorrow, they will equal last season’s tally of 30 points, with 28 games left.
Whereas the Reds have the fourth best away record in League One, with 14 points, their home record is the tenth best with 13 points.
Although he has praised the strong away followings, Duff has regularly said he wants to improve home crowds with better form at Oakwell.
They are averaging home crowds of slightly more than 10,000 this season which is the eighth best in the division.
Duff told the Chronicle: “If we’re not getting wins, people won’t come.
“That’s always been the case.
“It’s easy to just say we want more supporters. But everyone knows how tough it is in terms of the economic climate.
“And with the weather at the moment people might want to save their 25 or 30 quid. We appreciate the supporters who come. We want to be better at home, we want to put on good performances and get the place bouncing.
“It’s a trust thing. We have to build the trust. There has been a disconnect between the supporters and the club in the last 18 months. It’s up to me and the players to build it back. We might fall down on quality at times, and we have done, but I don’t think anyone can question the players’ spirit at the minute.”
The Reds beat Forest Green Rovers 2-0 in their most recent home game then won 2-1 at Bolton Wanderers in the FA Cup before the Shrewsbury success.
That followed a run of one point and no goals in four league games, after which they switched to a 3-5-2 system.
Duff said: “It’s been positive since we changed formation. We went four games
Adam Phillips nets the winner at Shrewsbury on Saturday. without scoring and it was the end of the world. You are going to get blips in football. The top three are away from the rest because they have put longer runs together.
“After that bad run, we didn’t start panicking, looking over our shoulder thinking we were going to get relegated.
“Now we’ve won a few games and scored goals it’s not like: ‘oh, we’re going to get in the top six’.
“Just keep trying to win games.” Tomorrow’s match is Barnsley’s second and final league fixture of November, after which they visit Port Vale in the EFL Trophy on Wednesday then host Crewe Alexandra a week tomorrow in the FA Cup.
Their next league game is at Peterborough United on Friday, December 2 before they visit Oxford United the following weekend.
Their next scheduled home league match at Oakwell is a month after tomorrow’s game, at home to Burton Albion on December 17.
BARNSLEY are due to visit fellow League One club Port Vale in the first knock-out round of the EFL Trophy on Wednesday at 7.30pm.
Vale are currently 15th in League One, four points behind the Reds, after winning the League Two playoffs in May. The Staffordshire club – whose director of football is former Barnsley manager David Flitcroft – drew 1-1 at Oakwell in the league in September.
This will be the 113th meeting of the two clubs, who have beaten each other 46 times, and the second in the EFL Trophy with the Reds having lost 1-0 at Vale Park in 2004.
Barnsley have won six of their last eight away matches in all competitions. The Reds finished second in their group after losing their first game 3-0 at home to Lincoln City then beating Newcastle United 21s and Doncaster Rovers.
Michael Duff has made wholesale changes for each of the Trophy games so far this season, with several under 23s players and fringe first teamers given a chance.
Some of them have since been loaned out but the likes of Jack Walton, Jasper Moon, Will Hondermarck, Harrison Nejman, Danny Benson, Fabio Jalo and Jack Butterfill could be involved.
The Reds were eliminated at this stage last time they were in the Trophy, at home to Manchester City on penalties in 2018.
Their previous campaign in the competition saw them lift the trophy at Wembley in 2016.