Barnsley will aim to end their wretched run of opening day results tomorrow at a ground where they have an awful recent record.

The Reds – who won two of the last 18 games of last season – begin their 2017/18 campaign at Ashton Gate against Bristol City whose head coach Lee Johnson was in charge at Oakwell until last year. A recent study by Bookmakers.tv has shown that, over the last decade, the Reds have picked up the fewest points, with five, on the opening days of the last ten seasons out of the 92 clubs in the top four divisions. They have won only once, drawing twice and losing eight – including the last four – while their 24 goals conceded is the worst total of the 92.

The last time they began a league campaign with a win was in 2012 when Middlesbrough lost 1-0 to Keith Hill's Reds at Oakwell. Barnsley have since lost at home to Wigan and Crawley then at Chesterfield and Ipswich in the last two campaigns. Head coach Paul Heckingbottom admits he will not have his full strength squad in place until later in the month, with more signings expected, but he is hoping to get off to a winning start.

He said: "Bristol have recruited well. I can't affect what Johnno and his players do. We will just prepare well to give them a really good game. They had £5million to spend on a striker so they have been looking in a totally different market to us. But then, compared to Middlesbrough (who have spent about £50million), that is another kettle of fish to Bristol."I love the season and I am excited. I have enjoyed this pre-season better than the last and it has flown by."

At his pre-match press conference, Johnson said: "The lads are in good nick physically and have worked hard over the summer. There's a buzz about the place and we're looking forward to the game. It'll be tough. Barnsley have got that steel and they had a good season last year but we know that."

Johnson spent just less than a year at Oakwell, arriving from Oldham Athletic in late February 2015 then moving back to Bristol City, where he spent the peak years of his playing career, in early February last year. He had just secured Barnsley's place in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy final at Wembley and won his last six league games, capping an incredible turnaround after he lost eight in a row earlier that season and took the Reds to the bottom of the third tier.

Heckingbottom – who worked under Johnson as a coach then replaced him as head coach – took Barnsley to wins at Wembley in the cup final then the following month's play-off final before finishing above Johnson's Robins who only secured safety in the final week of last season. 

Bristol's 3-2 home win over the Reds in late April was vital to keeping them up and continued Barnsley's dismal record at Ashton Gate. They have not won there in 15 visits since 1993, ten of which have brought losses. There have been 56 goals in the most recent 12 meetings of the two clubs.

It shows the huge turnaround in players that, just 18 months since his exit, Adam Hammill and reserve goalkeeper Nick Townsend are the only Johnson signings still at Oakwell – although he did initially bring in Lloyd Isgrove on loan before the winger returned this summer.

Adam Davies is the only other senior player who worked with Johnson. The former Reds boss has smashed his new club's transfer window this summer to sign Senegal international Famara Diedhiou for £5.3million while he has so far kept hold of ex-Red Josh Brownhill who had been linked with a move to the Premier League.