Barnsley continue unbeaten run with comfortable home win

Jacob Brown opened the scoring on 28 minutes with his first Oakwell goal then Kieffer Moore doubled the lead ten minutes later. Bradford’s Adam Chicksen was sent off in the 89th minute then Alex Mowatt secured the win in injury-time. 

The result means Barnsley are unbeaten in six League One matches and, although they remain fifth, they are just four points off the top two and eight behind leaders Portsmouth who lost at home to Blackpool. The Reds have a game in hand on the top two.

The Reds dominated the match and could have scored several more goals against a relegation-battling visiting side who offered very little.

Head coach Daniel Stendel made two changes to the side that lost at Burnley in the Premier League a week previously. Top-scorer Moore and youngster Brown replaced Mike Bahre and Ryan Hedges in the starting line-up.

Bradford, who were playing a 3-4-1-2, were the better side during a fairly dull first 25 minutes with Ryan Gowan’s looping header nestling on the roof of the net. But suddenly the Reds came to life and took control of the game with some excellent football.

The first goal of 2019 for Barnsley was after an excellent team move. Alex Mowatt brilliantly brought down a high ball then swapped clever passes with Mamadou Thiam before lofting in a cross from the left which Brown headed in from close range.

Ben Williams’ crosses almost helped the Reds go 2-0 up as Cauley Woodrow glanced a tough chance wide then Cameron McGeehan punched the ball in with his hands and was yellow carded.

The second goal came on 38 minutes as – after good interplay between Woodrow and Mowatt – Thiam’s ingenious backheel flick played in Mowatt on the right of the box who squared to Kieffer Moore and his powerful shot went straight through the goalkeeper Richard O’Donnell then trickled in. 

Moore headed over Thiam corners in very good positions either side of the half-time break then set up a chance for Cavare who forced a decent O’Donnell save from wide on the right of the box. 

McGeehan twice shot wide with powerful 20-yard efforts while Thiam wasted a glorious chance when a missed defensive header put him clean through on goal but he dragged badly wide of the left post from ten yards out. 

The Frenchman came close again when he brought down a cross from the left in the box and saw his shot tipped onto the right post and wide by O’Donnell.

Bradford went down to ten men when Chicksen clearly tripped Brown who was clean through on goal. Although the Barnsley man got in a shot which beat O’Donnell but went narrowly wide, the referee dismissed the Zimbabwe international. 

Mowatt saw the resulting free-kick clawed away by O’Donnell but eventually made it 3-0 in injury-time when Brown’s header gave him yards of space in the box to find the bottom right corner form eight yards. Substitute Victor Adeboyejo blazed over from close range after another Brown set-up, but it was a comprehensive win for the hosts. 

Barnsley: Davies; Cavare, Pinnock, Lindsay, B Williams; Brown, McGeehan, Mowatt, Thiam (Moncur 86mins); Woodrow (Bahre 71mins), Moore (Adeboyejo 81).  Subs: Greatorex, Dougall, Hedges, Jackson. Yellow cards: McGeehan, Lindsay, Brown, Mowatt.  Goals: Brown 28, Moore 38, Mowatt 90+1.

Bradford (3-4-2-1): O’Donnell; P O’Connor (Miller HT), A O’Connor, Knight-Percival; McGowan, Caddis (Akpan 71mins), O’Brien, Chicksen; Payne (Wood 84), Ball, Doyle.  Subs: Wilson, Devine, Isherwood, Maltby. Yellow cards: Payne, McGowan.