Barnsley's hopes of survival in the Championship took a huge blow with a 3-0 loss at mid-table Nottingham Forest on Tuesday night which kept them two points adrift of safety.
The hosts scored in the 26th and 36th minute then added another late on to claim a deserved win over a Reds side who improved in the second half but were disappointing overall.
The result leaves Barnsley 22nd in the table, knowing they need at least three points from their last two matches as their two main rivals Burton Albion and Bolton Wanderers play each other on Saturday. A Bolton win would relegate the Oakwell club with a game to spare if Barnsley do not beat Brentford.
Jose Morais caused major shocks with his team selection as he made six changes to the side that lost at Leeds United on Saturday, including four of the back five. The major surprise was that he dropped goalkeeper Adam Davies and replaced him with debutant youngster Jack Walton.
Rested captain Andy Yiadom dropped out of the squad and was replaced by Dimitri Cavare at right-back while Dani Pinillos replaced Zeki Fryers at left-back and centre-back Adam Jackson returned from injury and replaced Matt Mills. George Moncur came back into the side in place of Connor Mahoney while, up front, Kieffer Moore replaced Tom Bradshaw.
Walton made an excellent start, diving down to his right to brilliantly turn away a Matty Cash shot after the home youngster turned well on the edge of the box.The goalkeeper then made a more routine stop as Lee Tomlin's 20-yard effort was straight at him.
Barnsley began to play some good football, with Adam Hammill firing over just inside the box under pressure after receiving a pass from George Moncur on a quick break. Brad Potts then had a shot deflected over after a good move involving McBurnie and Moncur.
Tomlin opened the scoring after 26 minutes with a superb curling effort from 25 yards into the top right corner which Walton could not do anything about.
Walton then saved two overhead kicks as he easily caught Tomlin's effort then impressively sprang to his left to tip away Adlene Guedioura's attempt.
Home goalkeeper Stefanos Kapino turned away a 15-yard effort by McBurnie from the left of the box after another decent move, but it was soon 2-0.
Tomlin again did the damage with an excellent reverse pass which totally caught out the away defence and put Ben Brereton clean through to round Walton and tap into the empty net in the 36th minute.
Forest ended the first half on top, with Tomlin and Cash both firing wide, and went into half-time totally on top. Their debutant left-back Juan Fuentes had to be stretchered off at the break following Cavare's heavy tackle.
Mahoney came on for Moncur at half-time and fired over in a lively start by the away side. Moore fired just wide from the edge of the box then Liam Lindsay headed a corner from substitute Connor Mahoney wide.
Potts was then denied by a good Kapino save after hitting a powerful shot following a good exchange of passes with Mahoney. Kapino made an easier save in the 89th minute from a header by former Forest man Gary Gardner.
It was 3-0 late on when home substitute Joe Lolley showed superb skill to beat several Reds on the left of the box then his shot was saved by Walton but Apostolos Vellios fired in the rebound. Barnsley’s fans supported them throughout and were very loud until the final whistle and afterwards, despite a loss that leaves them in severe relegation trouble.
AS IT HAPPENED 18:43pm: Good evening and welcome to the Chronicle's coverage of Barnsley's Championship match at Nottingham Forest which is due to kick-off at 7.45pm.
18:45pm: Barnsley team: Walton; Cavare, Jackson, Lindsay, Pinillos; Potts, Gardner, Moncur; Hammill, Moore, McBurnie.
18:45pm: So Jack Walton makes his debut in goal
18:48pm: Subs: Davies, McCarthy, Pinnock, Mallan, Bradshaw, Thiam, Mahoney.
18:48pm: The other changes see Dimitri Cavare replace captain Andy Yiadom, who is out of the squad
18:48pm: Adam Jackson returns from injury in place of Matt Mills at centre-back
18:49pm: That is an extremely surprising selection from Jose Morris. Goalkeeping has been an issue all season but it's a huge game for Walton to make his debut in
18:50pm: According to his birthday on the Barnsley FC website, Walton turned 20 yesterday
18:53pm: Forest team: Kapino; Lichaj, Mancienne, Rafael Fuentes, Fox; Guedioura, Bridcutt, Watson, Cash, Tomlin, Brereton
18:54pm: Subs: Smith, Osborn, Colback, Lolley, Hobbs, Darikwa, Vellios
18:57pm: This match is a game in hand for the Reds on all the other teams in the relegation battle as it was originally scheduled to take place on Easter Monday but was called off due to waterlogged pitch.
18:57pm: Following their 2-1 loss at Leeds on Saturday, Barnsley are 22nd in the table, still two points adrift of safety.
19:03pm: 
Barnsley fell behind at Elland Road, against a team managed by their former boss Paul Heckingbottom, when Tom Pearce's shot beat Adam Davies. The goalkeeper has clearly paid the price because he probably should have saved it and has been dropped tonight
19:07pm: 
The Reds levelled with an own goal by Leeds' young centre-back Paudie O'Connor, who sliced a Zeki Fryers cross into his own net late in the first half for 1-1.
19:07pm: 
Leeds got the winner five minutes after the break through Ezgjan Alioski then Kieffer Moore missed this superb chance to equalise from just one yard out. Oliver McBurnie had a goal ruled out for offside and Adam Hammill was booked for diving when his coach thought he deserved a penalty.
19:08pm: Tonight Barnsley could jump out of the relegation zone with victory. Jose Morais, the head coach, said in yesterday's pre-match press conference: "We have to win this game because it is a game we have more than the others and, if we win, we will be in a very good position.
19:14pm: 
Morais added: "It is a make-or-break game and a must-win game. I am not thinking about what happens if we don't win, we are going to win. It's now or never, like the song. It's such a wonderful moment to be in. I believe all the players want to play this game and show what they are capable of."
19:14pm: On tonight's hosts, Morais added: "Nottingham Forest is a good opponent. It is a team who don't have the possibility to go for the play-offs and their situation in the league is already stable. They are playing with tranquility and nothing to lose. It is not easy but we have the possibility to win. I want us to use our chances and become more effective with the chances we are creating."
19:14pm: Forest are 17th in the table, 11 points clear of the Reds. They have had five hours less to recover for this match as they lost 2-1 at high-flying Cardiff City on Saturday in a 7.45pm kick-off while the Reds played at 3pm in Leeds and had a much shorter trip back.
19:16pm: Morais must make sure his team does not tire badly as they did in a similar midweek fixture earlier this month against another mid-table side in Ipswich Town who won 1-0 after Barnsley missed several good chances to take the lead.
19:18pm: This is is a meeting of two of Jose Mourinho's coaches from his time in charge of Real Madrid from 2010 to 2013. Aitor Karanka, who took over at the City Ground midway through the season having previously taken Middlesbrough to the Premier League, will come up against Jose Morais who he worked alongside for three years at the Bernabeu.
19:18pm: The bottom half of the Championship is a very different environment from the one in which the two managers worked together, helping Real to the La Liga title. Morais said: "I know Aitor. He is a friend and a colleague, a competent professional coach, an extraordinary family member and an extraordinary person."
19:23pm: Neither have a particularly sparkling record in their current jobs which they were given during this season. Karanka has four wins from 19 matches with Forest while Morais has two wins from 12 Barnsley games.
19:25pm: Karanka's Middlesbrough team relegated Barnsley from the Championship in 2014 while they also have the man who scored two goals that day, Lee Tomlin who returns to the team tonight
19:25pm: In their previous home fixture ten days ago, Karanka's side ended a six-match winless and goalless run, in which three defeats followed three draws, with a 2-1 home success over fellow mid-table side Ipswich thanks to goals in the 89th and 90th minutes. That ended a club record run of 640 minutes without scoring.
19:26pm: To recap on the team changes tonight for Barnsley. OUT: Davies, Yiadom, Mills, Fryers, Mahoney, Bradshaw. IN: Walton, Cavare, Jackson, Pinillos, Moncur, Moore
19:27pm: Only bottom two Burton Albion and Sunderland have more home losses than Forest's ten this season while only Burton and Birmingham have more overall defeats than their 21.
19:27pm: Only bottom two Burton Albion and Sunderland have more home losses than Forest's ten this season while only Burton and Birmingham have more overall defeats than their 21.
19:31pm: 
Spanish left-back Dani Pinillos played 35 games for Forest between 2015 and last year, with his only goal being a last-minute equaliser against bitter rivals Derby County. Pinillos said in the build-up to the called-off game: "My time at Forest was one of the best times of my career and I have a lot of good friends there. If I play the game I will be really happy and it will be really special for me."
19:31pm: Morais revealed in yesterday's press conference that Pinillos would replaced Zeki Fryers at left-back and the Spaniard is in the starting line-up so will play for the first time since the Millwall game on March 17.
19:32pm: 
Midfielder Gary Gardner had two loan spells at Forest from parent club Aston Villa in 2015 and 2016, scoring six goals in 38 goals. He said yesterday: "I was at Forest for a couple of seasons a couple of years ago. They will have massive support and it will be a tricky game for us. The fans and the club treated me well and I enjoyed more football there, scoring goals and having a successful time."
19:32pm: Gardner – who is captain tonight in Yiadom's absence – added: "It's a massive game. It's our game in hand and our plan is to win and get out of the relegation zone. We have to win to stand any chance of staying in the league. I wouldn't say there is pressure on us, we have all been looking forward to the game – the fans and us as players."
19:33pm: 
Centre-back Matt Mills joined Barnsley in January after two and a half years at Forest, for whom he made 87 appearances. He played against the Reds earlier this season. He has been dropped from the squad tonight after a poor match at Leeds
19:34pm: 
It will be a nostalgic return for Reds assistant head coach Dimas who played the full 90 minutes at the City Ground in Euro 96 when his Portugal team beat Croatia 3-0. That was one of the highlights of a glittering career for the 44-cap left-back who was also with Juventus when they reached two Champions League finals.
19:34pm: Dimas was on the bench for the 1998 Champions League final when Juventus lost to Real Madrid, where Forest manager Aitor Karanka was playing at the time.
19:41pm: 
Barnsley will be desperate to recreate last season's 1-0 success at the City Ground in January 2017, which was only their second win their in 16 visits since 1948. Conor Hourihane scored a spectacular 30-yard winner in the 88th minute to leave the Reds eighth in the Championship, just four points away from a play-off place.
19:42pm: Hourihane was sold later that month along with top-scorer Sam Winnall and right-back James Bree and Barnsley's form has dipped dramatically since then.
19:42pm: The Oakwell club have beaten Forest 30 times and lost to them on 29 occasions with 22 draws. They have won three out of their last four matches against the Tricky Trees including a 2-1 home success in August this season.
19:42pm: The goals that day came early in each half by Tom Bradshaw – who tapped in on the line from Matty Pearson's header – and Ryan Hedges, who skipped past his current club-mate Matt Mills to fire in the winner with a low 20-yard effort. He is not in the squad tonight
19:42pm: Forest's manager that day, Mark Warburton, was sacked on New Year's Eve and replaced by Karanka.
19:43pm: The players are out on the pitch and the match is about to kick off
19:44pm: Jack Walton jogs towards his goal with intent, claps the Barnsley fans behind it, hangs his towel and hugs Adam Jackson who has come to give him a late pep talk. He then jogs up to each member of the back four as well as striker Kieffer Moore and gives them all a hug. The players are keen to give him some encouragement on what must be an extremely nerve-racking experience
19:45pm: Now they are changing ends. Just another little change to increase Walton's wait for his first action
19:46pm: As has become customary recently, Barnsley's players huddle together while the opposition wait in formation. Now they are ready
19:46pm: UNDERWAY
19:47pm: The pitch looks lush and in really good condition. It is hard to imagine it was waterlogged just three weeks ago
19:47pm: Forest have spent the first minute in possession but totally in their half
19:48pm: 2 Kieffer Moore intercepts a loose pass by Adlene Guedioura which allows Adam Hammill to run with the ball down the right wing but his cross is blocked
19:49pm: 3 Not a great deal has happened so far, but Forest have had almost all of the ball
19:51pm: Jack Walton's first touch in professional football is to calmly collect an overhit long ball. He then passes the ball around with his defenders for a few seconds which will bring him valuable early confidence
19:53pm: 7 George Moncur has the first shot of the ball game from 25 yards but it is sliced high and wide
19:54pm: Much will be made of Barnsley's debutant goalkeeper and back four, three of whom did not play the last match, but Forest's defence is similarly unusual. Their goalkeeper Stefanos Kapino is a Greek international but this is only his second EFL game while left-back Juan Fuentes makes his debut and Danny Fox is playing at centre-back but is usually a left-back
19:55pm: Both sides will feel the opportunity is there to really go at the opposition's back line, but as yet there has not been too many good attacks
19:57pm: You can hear Jack Walton shouting 'time! time! as Barnsley play the ball across the back four. The young goalkeeper clearly isn't so overcome by nerves that he can't be a vocal commander of the defence
19:58pm: 11 A right-wing cross is headed by Forest man Eric Lichaj over his own bar but the referee rules that Kieffer Moore had fouled him
19:58pm: 12 What a save from Jack Walton! Diving full-stretch to his right to deny a low shot from Matty Cash who turned on the edge of the box
19:59pm: 13 There is then a bit of head tennis from the corner until Barnsley are given a free-kick
19:59pm: Walton will feel much better after that, a sensational first save in first team football
20:00pm: On the basis of recent weeks, Adam Davies would not have saved that. He has been letting those kind of shots in all too often
20:00pm: There is a delay here as player receives treatment in the Reds box. Danny Fox is up and walks away now
20:02pm: 16 Walton makes another save, this time a much easier one as Lee Tomlin cuts in from the left but fires straight at the goalkeeper from just outside the box
20:04pm: 18 Barnsley's best chance so far comes as they win the ball in the Forest half and break quickly with Moncur playing in Hammill who shoots over from the edge of the box while under pressure from defenders
20:05pm: It's quite an even game here, Forest may feel they have had slightly the better of it as they have forced debutant Walton into the one really good save so far
20:07pm: 20 Cavare takes a long throw but it is cleared easily
20:08pm: 22 Another decent Reds move as Moncur goes on a mazy run, passes to McBurnie who touches the ball of nicely to Potts whose shot is deflected over. Corner Barnsley
20:08pm: 22 Hammill's left wing corner floats over everyone including Kieffer Moore who was just a couple of inches under it
20:09pm: George Moncur looks likely so far, seeing a lot of the ball and going on some good runs with decent forward passes
20:11pm: 24 Ben Brereton cuts in from the right wing and has a shot which is well blocked by Liam Lindsay, the ball is put back in the area and Jack Walton is fouled jumping to make a high catch
20:11pm:
20:12pm: It was a brilliant curler into the top right corner from 25 yards out
20:13pm: Tomlin scored two to send Barnsley down when playing for Karanka's Middlesbrough in 2014. Is he helping relegate them again?
20:15pm: That was a real body blow for the Reds who were just starting to get into the game
20:15pm: I don't think you can fault Walton for the first EFL goal he has conceded, it was an excellent curler into the top right corner
20:15pm: It was caused by a run by Matty Cash who laid the ball off. The Forest academy graduate has probably been the best player on the pitch so far
20:17pm: 31 Now Tomlin attempts an even more spectacular goal, overhead kicking the ball but it loops easily to Walton
20:17pm: 31 Then Barnsley got up the other end and, after some decent passing, McBurnie had a shot from the left edge of the box which was turned away by Stefanos Kapino diving down to his left
20:18pm: The game has been pretty frantic in the last couple of minutes
20:19pm: McBurnie looks really up for it tonight, drifting central or deep to pick up the ball, going around players and trying to make things happen.
20:20pm: 34 Another penetrating run by the impressive Cash leads to his cross being blocked and a corner for the hosts
20:20pm: 35 Another good save by Jack Walton, springing to his left to turn wide a hooked effort by Adlene Guedioura
20:21pm:
20:23pm: The young academy striker runs onto a through ball by Tomlin and is totally clean through. He rounds Walton and taps into the empty net
20:24pm: This is a disaster for the Reds. This was supposed to be their shot at redemption, the game in hand which the optimists remaining on the Oakwell terraces were banking on to save their season
20:25pm: The visiting defence was cut open far too easily there, they were totally exposed by one pass, possibly trying to play the offside trap
20:26pm: Barnsley have put a couple of crosses from the right into the box in the last few minutes but they have come to nothing
20:27pm: Adlene Guedioura has been down injured, following a Jackson challenge but is now up and limping
20:27pm: Just a few minutes until the end of what has been a harrowing first half for the Reds
20:30pm: 44 Cash has a shot from 25 yards but his low effort is scuffed and well wide
20:30pm: 44 Forest are rampant,. Cash is on fire as he skips into the Reds box and is tackled by Jackson, The corner is taken quickly and Tomlin blazes wide from a tight angle
20:31pm: The home side will be thinking that there are plenty more goals to be scored in this match
20:32pm: Barnsley have a free-kick deep in injury-time. Hammill's ball is headed down by Moore but cleared
20:34pm: Barnsley just cannot stop Forest pouring forward. It's ridiculously easy for the home team to get in or around the Barnsley box in great numbers
20:34pm: This is supposed to be a home team with nothing to play for against a visiting side battling for their lives but all the intensity, momentum and drive has been with the hosts so far
20:35pm: HALF-TIME
20:45pm: Forest's debutant left-back Juan Fuentes has been stretchered off. Highly unlikely he will return for the second. The Reds may be tempting to make some changes too
20:48pm: Connor Mahoney is clearly coming on. He is on the edge of the pitch being given instructions by Jose Morais, who already has his players on the pitch
20:49pm: Mahoney is going to replace Moncur, who actually looked good in the first half
20:50pm: The referee has kept the teams waiting for several minutes he is out to ironic applause
20:51pm: Ben Osborn on for the injured Juan Fuentes
20:51pm: SECOND HALF UNDERWAY
20:52pm: 46 McBurnie leads a break and should play in Mahoney who would be free but goes the other way to Hammill whose low whipped cross flies across the face of goal
20:53pm: 47 Mahoney shoots over from just outside the box, Lively start for the visitors
20:53pm: Morris is clearly going for a 4-4-2 with McBurnie finally playing up front with Moore, and Mahoney and Hammill on the wings
20:54pm: That's a positive move but it might have been better to take off Brad Potts and leave Moncur on. Potts and Gardner is quite a defensive duo in the middle which lacks the creativity of Moncur
20:55pm: 'We're going to win 3-2' comes the chant from the away end.
20:56pm: Forest's back line is nowhere near first choice, They have a forward at left-back in substitute Osborne, a left-back at centre-back in Danny Fox
20:56pm: Barnsley have begun well after the break, Hammill cuts in from the left but sees his shot blocked.
20:57pm: Dimitri Cavare is being booed by the home fans after a heavy challenge which meant debutant Juan Fuentes left on a stretcher
20:58pm: That was right at the end of the first half and the Spaniard was down for about five minutes before being brought off
20:58pm: The match has settled down just a little bit down after Barnsley made a very positive start to the second half
20:59pm:
21:00pm: 54 Forest flick the ball up from the free-kick and Osborne's shot is deflected over
21:00pm: 55 The low corner should be cut out but comes to Adlene Guedioura whose shot is blocked
21:02pm: Forest are playing with a confidence after going 2-0 up, they are attempting some expanses passes and defenders and brining the ball out from the back with runs forward
21:03pm: Sensational support from the Reds fans. 'We love you Barnsley, we do' they sing, despite the score being the utter opposite of what they wanted in tonight's huge game
21:05pm: We're approaching the hour mark now. Barnsley haven't created much since starting the first half well
21:05pm: 59 Kieffer Moore smashes a shot from 25 yards which is low and just a few feet wide of the bottom left corner
21:07pm: 61 Ben Brereton leads a break for the hosts and Dimitri Cavare has to concede a corner
21:07pm: 61 The corner is taken short and Liam Bridcutt badly overhits the cross out of play
21:08pm: The two main positives for Barnsley tonight are just a few feet away from each other. The goalkeeper Jack Walton who has kept the score down on a very good debut, and the fans who are pumping out chant after chant
21:10pm: Forest certainly haven't re-established the dominance they enjoyed late in the first half, possibly finding Barnsley's 4-4-2 harder to break down than the 4-3-3
21:11pm: 65 Barnsley have a great chance to make it 2-1 but Liam Lindsay heads a corner Mahoney chance wide
21:12pm: The Scottish centre-back has only netted once for the Reds and that was a bundled, controversial effort. He came down from Scotland with a good goals record from set plays but just has not replicated it
21:13pm: We're almost three quarters of the way through this match now
21:13pm: Barnsley are on top at the moment but they really need to score soon to make a game of this
21:14pm: 68 Walton rushes out of his area to kick a ball over the top of the Reds defence out of play. It's been a very assured debut from the youngsters
21:15pm: 69 Ben Brereton bursts into the box from the right and wins a corner
21:16pm: Barnsley clear the corner but Forest work it back in and Brereton passes to Cash who hits the outside of the right post from a tight angle on the right
21:16pm:
21:16pm:
21:17pm: Attendance: 23,633 (1845 form Barnsley)
21:18pm: 'Just like watching Brazil' is chanted loudly from the away end. Call it diehard fandom, gallows humour and pure defiance but the Reds fans are providing magnificent support tonight
21:20pm: Barnsley are still trying to attack, firing balls into the box for Kieffer Moore but he isn't having much joy
21:21pm: 75 Cavare whips in a good low cross and it's cleared for a corner which is headed wide by Jackson
21:23pm: It looks as thought Forest will make two changes now
21:24pm: 78 A good move between Mahoney and Potts on the right wing ends with a the latter having a powerful shot from just inside the box but Stefanos Kapino gets down well to his right to save
21:25pm: Thiam has been lively since coming on, he beats a man and has a shot blocked outside the box
21:25pm:
21:26pm:
21:26pm:
21:26pm:
21:26pm: So both the goal-scorers are off to standing ovations
21:27pm: Now the away fans are chanting 'Accrington Stanley we're coming for you' which the Leeds supporters sang to them on Saturday. The home fans see the funny side and clap them
21:29pm: We're into the 84th minute at the City Ground. It looks as though Barnsley will go into their last two games two points adrift and, because Bolton and Burton play each other, they will need at least three points to stay up
21:29pm: Tom Bradshaw is ready to come on
21:31pm: Bradshaw is still waiting to come up but he will only have a few minutes to inspire an unlikely comeback
21:32pm: Morais has had a couple of chances to make the change but Bradshaw is still talking to coach Joao Cunha in the dugout
21:32pm: On the pitch, it's end to end but with neither side able to create a chance
21:32pm:
21:33pm:
21:33pm: It's quite surprising that the big targetman has come off in the 87th minute at 2-0 down
21:35pm: 'We can see you sneaking out' sing the Barnsley fans to the few home supporters who are trying to beat the final whistle traffic
21:35pm: 89 Gary Gardner comes close against his former club, heading a right wing cross by Kapino dives to his right and saves fairly easily
21:36pm: 3-0! Apostolos Vellios
21:37pm: Barnsley were opened up by a brilliant Joe Lolley run on the left side of the box then he tried to dink it over Walton who made a decent save but Vellios turned in the rebound
21:38pm: It's clearly all over now as we go into injury-time. The Barnsley fans have stayed which is a real credit to them
21:39pm: FULL-TIME: Forest 3, Barnsley 0, The last action sees Tom Bradshaw head over a Pinillos cross
