Paul Heckingbottom says he will have to change his behaviour on the sidelines when he returns from a two-game dugout ban for tomorrow's 'massive' derby at Hillsborough against his former club Sheffield Wednesday.

The Reds head coach has not been on the touchline for four weeks since being sent to the stands for the third time in less than a year for walking onto the pitch to confront the referee at half-time in a 3-1 win at Millwall. He admitted a charge and was banned for two games. Heckingbottom watched the home games against Middlesbrough and Hull City, which brought a 2-2 draw then a 1-0 loss on the last two Saturdays, from Oakwell's West Stand. He will be back pitchside for tomorrow's 12.30pm kick-off at Hillsborough, where he was sent to the stands in a 2-0 defeat last season.

Heckingbottom told the Chronicle: "I will have to change my behaviour because apparently treating referees properly and not swearing at them gets you in the stand.I will probably not talk to them, apart from going to give them teamsheets. I am trying to get feedback from the referees' association because there are lots of things I am not happy with to the point of getting really angry about it. 

"But I will get people's backs up if I try to get some answers so I have some people looking at that for me and hopefully I can get some feedback which isn't just waffle.         We have not had any player booked for dissent this season and the referees are acknowledging that I am not swearing at them or insulting them even though I am getting sent off."

Heckingbottom was dismissed in the same fixture last year after clashing with his former Wednesday team-mate Lee Bullen, one of the Owls coaches who entered the Barnsley technical area.

"It hasn't changed anything between me and Bully. We spoke straight afterwards and had a beer so we are fine. It was purely down to the fourth official allowing all the Wednesday staff in our technical area and, when you are wronged liked that, I just can't accept it. I still wouldn't know how to deal with it again if it happened this time."

Heckingbottom played 47 games for Wednesday, scoring six goals, between 2004 and 2006. He helped them to promotion via the 2005 League One play-off final before doing the same with his hometown club Barnsley a year later. He was then sent off in the 24th minute for Barnsley in a 2-1 loss at Hillsborough.

"It's a former club of mine which does make it a bit different. I nearly got in a fight in Barnsley town centre with someone I knew the first week after I signed for Wednesday.  For most Barnsley fans this is the biggest one. I walked in on a Wednesday fan and a Barnsley fan arguing about it in Buildbase this week. They saw me and didn't say anything for a while then started talking about it again.

"It's always a good game with a good atmosphere. Both games were really good last season, jam-packed with incidents and stuff going on off the field between the clubs which made things even better. It's a fixture we all look forward to.

"Our players will not really know about this fixture. Only four or five of them played in it last year. We will have to speak about it, what it's about and what to expect. It could be a fantastic atmosphere and it will be a game that is different to some of the others. We're getting better day by day, game by game and week by week but it's all about winning and this is the kind of game that can kickstart a season. There is always a coupon buster in this league every single week and why can't that be us?"

Carlos Carvalhal, whose Owls lost in the 2016 play-off final then the semi-finals a year later, is under increasing pressure following four losses in five games which leaves them languishing in 16th place, just above the 19th-placed Reds. Heckingbottom said: "Wednesday are not in the best of form in terms of results but they can be a wounded animal and come out fighting like they did against Leeds (a 3-0 win on October 1) when they were really, really good and could have won by more. It's a really tough game for us but we will be ready for it."