Barnsley suffered their heaviest loss of the season as they went down 4-0 at home to Championship leaders Bournemouth on Friday evening.
The visitors went 2-0 up at half-time then doubled their lead in the second half with the goals being caused by a mixture of high-quality attacking play by one of the promotion favourites and also very sloppy defending from the Reds.
The result took the Cherries top of the table and left their hosts 15th, as they slipped down a place due to the goal difference.
Valerien Ismael kept the same team that beat Birmingham City 2-1 away on Tuesday, while the bench was also the same.
Bournemouth almost took the lead in the second minute when goalkeeper Jack Walton charged out of his area to try to intercept a pass but was beaten to it by Sam Surridge who fired wide of the empty goal from 25 yards out on the right.
England international Dominic Solanke then headed wide from close range under pressure from Callum Brittain after meeting a Surridge cross.
Barnsley came close in the tenth minute when Victor Adeboyejo flicked a long ball to Cauley Woodrow who found Conor Chaplin whose back heel flick allowed Alex Mowatt to shoot from just outside the box but Asmir Begovic dived to his right to save. Begovic also denied Mads Andersen from a tight angle on the right of his six-yard box after the centre-back was found by a dinked Herbie Kane free-kick.
The opening goal came in the 12th minute when, after a nice move opened Barnsley up on their left, Adam Smith brought the ball inside and found Philip Billing who shot into the bottom right corner from just outside the box.
It was nearly 2-0 soon after when Billing's low cross from the left was nudged by David Brooks to Solanke and he wriggled past both Michael Sollbauer and Michael Helik before his shot from a tight angle on the left of the six-yard box was smothered by Walton.
The game calmed down after a frantic first 20 minutes then the Reds had a good spell with Adeboyejo unable to control a Mowatt pass in the box which would have left him with a tap-in while, after more good work by the captain, Chaplin's cross whizzed across the face of goal.
The Reds came extremely close to a leveller on 40 minutes when another quick free-kick by Kane found Chaplin on the left and his low cross was met by a sliding Helik at the back post whose effort hit Andersen two yards out and went just wide.
But the hosts were punished in first half injury-time when Woodrow was tackled by Lewis Cook in his half then Solanke beat Helik to the ball and powered past the Polish centre-back in the box before firing past Walton from six yards out on the left.
It was 3-0 seven minutes after the interval when Diego Rico curled a free-kick from the right wing into the top right corner.
Ismael made a triple change with Luke Thomas, Dominik Frieser and Clarke Oduor coming on for Adeboyejo, Chaplin and Callum Styles then, five minutes later, Aapo Halme replaced Helik.
Woodrow had Barnsley's first shot of the second half midway through it as his low 20-yard effort was pushed around the bottom right corner by Begovic. Thomas then curled wide from a similar distance minutes later.
But the fourth Cherries goal arrived in the 68th minute when Kane tried to pass to Sollbauer but overhit it and played Surridge through on goal and the striker blasted a shot through Walton then it trickled over the line.
Andersen then got away with a wild two-footed challenge on substitute Dan Gosling which earned him a yellow card when he could have been sent off.
Walton then saved from a right-sided shot by Rodrigo Riquelme who had just come off the bench before Mowatt blazed a long-range strike well off-target.
Barnsley: Walton; Sollbauer, Helik (Halme 64mins), Andersen; Brittain, Mowatt, Kane (Palmer 83), Styles (Oduor 59); Adeboyejo (Frieser 59), Woodrow, Chaplin (Thomas 59). Unused: Collins, James, Miller, Schmidt. Yellow cards: Andersen.
Bournemouth: Begovic; Kelly, S Cook, Mepham; Smith (Kikenny 90mins), L Cook (Riquelme 81), Billing (Oforborh 90), Brooks (Gosling 71m), Rico; Surridge, Solanke (Anthony 71) . Unused: Travers, Simpson, Zemura, Stanislas. Goals: Billing 12, Solanke 45+1, Rico 52, Surridge 68.
AS IT HAPPENED
  • 5:31pm
    GAME UNDERWAY
  • 5:32pm
    1 Barnsley win a throw on the left and Kane takes but eventually it is headed clear at the second attempt
  • 5:33pm
    2 Barnsley get away with a big let-off in the second minute. Walton rushes out of his goal but is beaten to it by Surridge who has an empty net to aim at on the right wing 25 yards out but firs wide of the bottom left corner
  • 5:34pm
    Walton should have stayed in his box and let Helik deal with that but he just misjudged it. Then got away with it. He literally held his hand up to acknowledge that
  • 5:35pm
    Surridge scored against Barnsley for Oldham in the EFL Trophy in 2018. He has played against no side more than the Reds in his career. But he has missed a golden chance here
  • 5:36pm
    4 Lewis Cook takes a free-kick from the right. It is headed clear to David Brooks whose volley is skewed horribly wide
  • 5:38pm
    When Barnsley have got on the ball so far, they have passed it around really comfortably. But they have been exposed by long passes a couple of times at the back, with Sollbauer having to slide in to block from Solanke in the box just now
  • 5:40pm
    8 Barnsley's first chance of the match is a long-range strike by Alex Mowatt which forces the visitors goalkeeper Begovic to leap to his left and save well. The ball is recycled and Mowatt puts in an excellent cross from the left which is just missed by Victor Adeboyejo then a defender gets there just before Callum Brittain
  • 5:41pm
    Earlier on, Bournemouth's Surridge crossed in the box for Solanke but Brittain did really well to put pressure on and the header went wide
  • 5:41pm
    10 Kane dinks a free-kick into the box and it falls for Andersen at a tight angle on the right whose effort is blocked by Begovic then goes out for a corner. It is cleared for another corner
  • 5:42pm
    11 Mowatt plays his right wing corner to Kane then gets it back and his cross is over everyone
  • 5:43pm
    Just going back to that Mowatt shot earlier. It came after a fantastic bit of play as Adeboyejo won a long ball and volleyed to Woodrow who passed to Chaplin whose clever flick went straight to Mowatt
  • 5:43pm
    GOAL!
    12 Philip Billing fires into the bottom right corner from outside the box
  • 5:45pm
    Barnsley cut out by a decent move down their left. Adam Smith carries the ball into a central area and passes to Billing who fires past Walton
  • 5:49pm
    17 Bournemouth close to a second goal. Solanke somehow wriggles past two players in the box but his shot from a tight angle on the left is smothered by Walton
  • 5:53pm
    20 minutes in and the hosts have really struggled with Bournemouth's attacks and are probably fortunate not to have conceded more than once. The Reds look good when they get the ball up to their front three but it hasn't happened enough
  • 5:56pm
    24 Callum Styles is fouled and Barnsley have a free-kick just outside the box
  • 5:56pm
    25 Herbie Kane's 22-yard free-kick goes well over the bar
  • 5:59pm
    Barnsley seemed to have settled down a little bit in the last few minutes, seeing more of the ball and starting to get it forward a bit more without creating a chance for a leveller
  • 6:02pm
    Definitely a better few minutes for the home side. Ismael marching out to the edge of his technical area to energetically and loudly applaude after some good pressing by his team
  • 6:06pm
    35 Barnsley come close. After a Styles cross is cleared, Mowatt drives into the box and whips in a low pass to Victor Adeboyejo but he cannot control it eight yards out and makes no contact. It was a fast pass but if he had taken a good touch, he would have had a tap in
  • 6:08pm
    36 Another decent moment for the Reds. Mowatt wins the ball 30 yards out, amid cries of handball by the visitors, then plays a good pass to Chaplin on the left of the box but his touch takes him wide then he drills a low pass across the face of goal but there is no one there
  • 6:13pm
    40 Barnsley close again. A quick free-kick down the left by Kane plays in Chaplin and he sends a low cross which goes all the way to the back post to Helik who fires it back across goal and it hits Andersen two yards out and goes wide
  • 6:16pm
    Two added minutes in this first half
  • 6:17pm
    Barnsley have definitely had the better of the last 25 minutes or so, but can they level before the break?
  • 6:19pm
    GOAL!
    Dominic Solanke fires in from the left of the box after beating Michal Helik
  • 6:38pm
    SECOND HALF UNDERWAY
  • 6:38pm
    That second goal was a real sucker punch for theReds after they were the better side for the previous 25 minutes and missed a fine chance through Andersen
  • 6:40pm
    Barnsley need to get the next goal and make things nervous for their visitors
  • 6:41pm
    Michael Sollbauer currently down receiving treatment
  • 6:42pm
    Sollbauer back in action
  • 6:43pm
    GOAL!
    Diego Rico curls in a free-kick from the left wing
  • 6:45pm
    It's a great free-kick into the top corner. Walton clearly expecting a cross and he is beaten
  • 6:50pm
    Frieser, Thomas and Oduor on for Chaplin, Styles and Adeboyejo
  • 6:51pm
    Bournemouth pushing for a fourth, with David Brooks firing over
  • 6:51pm
    60 Decent opening for the Reds. Brittain gets in a good position on the right and fires the ball across goal but, not for the first time, no one is there to turn it in
  • 6:55pm
    Fourth change sees Aapo Halme replace Michal Helik
  • 6:56pm
    65 Woodrow has Barnsley's first shot of the second half, his 25 yard effort turns down the bottom right corner by Begovic who easily catches the follow up corner
  • 6:59pm
    67 Barnsley shooting more now. Thomas curls one from 25 yards but it was about a foot wide of the right post
  • 6:59pm
    GOAL!
    Sam Surridge makes it four
  • 7:01pm
    Horrible moment for Herbie Kane who tries to pass to Sollbauer but instead puts Surridge clean through on goal and his shot blasts through Walton and in
  • 7:06pm
    Bournemouth bring on Jaiden Anthony for Solanke and Dan Gosling for Brooks
  • 7:07pm
    YELLOW CARD
    Mads Andersen is booked for clattering a Bournemouth man
  • 7:09pm
    That could have been a red card for Andersen as he lunged in two footed on Gosling
  • 7:09pm
    A quarter of an hour remaining, and this is damage limitation for the Reds.
  • 7:12pm
    Rodrigo Riquelme replaces Lewis Cook
  • 7:13pm
    82 Riquelme almost scoes straight away but his shot from the right side of the box is turned behind by Walton
  • 7:14pm
    83 Palmer on for Kane
  • 7:14pm
    84 Mowatt shoots from long range again but puts his effort off target
  • 7:17pm
    Into the final five minutes of normal time on a tough night for the Reds. They have been sloppy for some of the goals and punished by a good side
  • 7:21pm
    Double Bournemouth change. Nnamdi Ofoborh and Gavin Kilkenny on for Adam Smith and Phil Billing who opened the scoring
  • 7:22pm
    Three added minutes
  • 7:24pm
    FULL-TIME: Barnsley 0, Bournemouth 4. A tough night for the Reds against one of the favourites for promotion. Bournemouth showed their quality but were helped by a couple of very sloppy goals by their hosts