Paul Heckingbottom is looking forward to a different challenge tomorrow when his team set aside their attack on the Championship top six to focus on their FA Cup tie at League Two Blackpool.
The Reds are expected to be backed by an away following of more than 3,000 at Bloomfield Road tomorrow as they search for a fifth away win in seven games. The head coach said: "I am looking forward to the Blackpool game.
"I remember when I was a player, the FA Cup always had a different feeling about it. It would be nice to have a good run in it this year. I am looking forward to taking this team to Blackpool which should be a tough game against a good team."
Pool boss Gary Bowyer said: "Barnsley have got an English manager in the Championship who is doing really well, but he doesn't get the credit he deserves. If he had a foreign ring to his name I think he might get a little more praise than he's getting. I think he's been brilliant and I'm delighted for him."
Blackpool were crushed 6-0 in the FA Cup by the 1910 Barnsley side who would reach the final that year, but the Seasiders won the next three meetings between the clubs in the world famous competition at Oakwell in 1949, 1982 and 2002.
Late goals from Michael Coulson and Stephen Foster saw the Reds come from behind to beat Blackpool 2-1 in the third round in 2008, when Simon Davey's Barnsley reached the semi-final with later wins over Premier League giants Chelsea and Liverpool.
Since then, the Reds have only got past the third round once – in 2013 when they lost 5-0 at Manchester City in the quarter-finals. They had suffered six third round defeats in seven seasons before their humiliating first round loss at non-league Altrincham last season.
Barnsley will hope to avoid another cup shock when they visit Blackpool, who suffered two successive relegations in the last two seasons which took them from the Championship to League Two. The Reds have only lost one of their last seven games against the Tangerines while their last 12 visits to the seaside town have brought six wins, four draws and only two defeats.
Last season Barnsley drew 1-1 at Bloomfield Road in September then Sam Winnall netted a hat-trick on December 28 as they won 4-2 at Oakwell to begin the run that would take them up, while Blackpool went out of the division at the other end.
The Tangerines are starting to find more stability on the pitch under former Blackburn manager Bowyer. But they lost their last two home games which ended a run of five straight wins at Bloomfield Road where they had not lost since August. Pool are now tenth, four points outside the play-off places in League Two.
