Fleetwood Town will travel across the Pennines to the Oakwell on Saturday for their 3pm kick-off against Barnsley, and in this preview we will tell you all you need to know about game week 14 of our Sky Bet League One campaign.
Fixture: Barnsley FC V Fleetwood Town
Competition: Sky Bet League One
Date: Saturday 28 October 2023
Kick-off: 15:00pm (BST)
Venue: Oakwell Stadium, Grove Street, Barnsley, Yorkshire, S71 1ET
ALL ABOUT BARNSLEY
High-flying Barnsley are looking to continue their good form of being unbeaten in four games as the Yorkshire side have scored nine in those four games, only conceding one in the process. This positive start to the season sees the Tykes sit comfortably in third, breathing down the two sides in the automatic spots’ necks.
With the most positive goal difference in the division with 29 goals scored and 13 conceded, Barnsley are no strangers to finding the back of the net especially with Devante Cole already in double figures in the league so far with ten and leading the scoring charts – the ex Fleetwood man has scored 34% of the hosts’ goals this season.
With the average age of Saturday’s hosts this season coming in at a youthful 24 years and three months – the third youngest in the league - combined with the driving force that is Neill Collins at the helm of this squad – the Yorkshire side are optimistic that the position they currently sit in now in the Play-Off spots is where they aim to be or in-and-around come the end of the season.
The Tykes will look to go one better than last year’s attempt of a return to the Championship having missed out at the final hurdle in last year in the Play-Off Final at Wembley, with fellow Yorkshire men Sheffield Wednesday winning 1-0 with the last kick of the game.
THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN AT BOTH CLUBS
With a name that’s etched into Luton Town’s history guiding them into promotion into the Premier League for the first time in their existence as a manager, current Luton head coach Rob Edwards has stepped out at Highbury for Fleetwood and also Oakwell for Barnsley in his playing days; a direct loan to the Cods from Barnsley at the back-end of his career for game time meant Edwards only played four games for Town.
Devante Cole: Cole – a product of Manchester City’s academy – must love wearing a Barnsley shirt as this is his second spell at the club, both of which rather successful - the first was a loan in 2014 with seven goals scored in 28 games and his second is in present day, seven stints with other sides later; Since Cole’s arrival on a permanent transfer from Motherwell in June 2021, Barnsley’s number 44 has 28 goals in 94 appearances, coincidentally the same amount of appearances Cole made in a Town shirt but with six less goals [22] back in 2016.
Rob Atkinson: In 2011, Atkinson joined Town from fellow Conference Premier [now the National League] side Grimsby where the defender helped the Cods win promotion into the football league for the first time in the club’s history. Atkinson wore the armband for Fleetwood on a few occasions during his 36 games for the club as his appearances are almost a half an half split with 17 in the national league and 18 in League Two and one in the EFL Trophy. The number 25 for the FY7 side started his career at Barnsley however didn’t cement a starting spot only managing eight appearances for the Tykes.
FULL TICKETING DETAILS
Following Town’s dramatic 2-1 win away at Reading last time out, Johnson is hoping his lads carry momentum into what is the second out of three ex-premier league sides the Cods will face this week with Blackpool coming up next week, but focus turns to Oakwell and we want you, the Cod Army there in full force and backing the lads.
with the fixture chosen as the Fleetwood Town’s Official Supporters Club’s chosen match for their annual game, the atmosphere is bound to be a good one in that away end and the journey from Lancashire.
Tickets will be available on the day at Oakwell though with a slight increase in the prices on the match day.
See below for the prices you will now need to pay following the 4pm deadline:
Adults: £25
Seniors (65+): £18
Under-22s: £18
Under-19s: £10
Under-14s: £5
Tickets purchased on match day in Yorkshire, will be purchased from the away ticket turnstiles [T44] where cash and card will both be accepted.
Travel for the game is available where coaches will be departing from Highbury at 9:30am costing only £10 for Onward Card holders and £20 for non-Onward Card Holders – both travel and match tickets can be purchased online at the same time – so get involved and get joining the travelling Cods!
KEY IFOLLOW DETAILS
If you can’t make the fixture but want to follow the action, there are a few ways to keep up to date whether you are U-based or overseas with audio commentary from our partners at BBC Radio Lancashire if you select the audio option and with the Video Match Pass you can watch the game.
Audio Match Pass: £2.50
Video Match Pass: £10.00
Season Audio Pass: £45.00
BUY YOUR IFOLLOW MATCH PASS HERE ONLINE!
WHAT LEE JOHNSON HAD TO SAY PRE-MATCH
“A win is definitely what we are looking for and I think it is a possibility – if I was Barnsley I would be looking at us and making notes of the serious threats we have and that we played well in the week – three games in a week is a huge test for us and it’s also a test for me because I need to balance team selection, we can’t create a victim mentality based on a good win and bring an average performance on Saturday.
“We’re going to have to perform well if we want to get something, Barnsley have done well and it’s a club I know well, I know the ethos and what the club is built on, you have to try and break that spirit before you even go to a place like Barnsley - it’s definitely going to be a tough game but it’s a good game for us - it’s relatively local so hopefully the Fleetwood contingent will be travelling there in force.”
