In-form Bristol City see their 100% record ended by brave Barnsley

A spirited performance from a struggling Barnsley side saw them earn a point against the early Championship leaders in dramatic fashion.

Despite being under the interim management of Adam Murray following the departure of Gerhard Struber, the Tykes flew out of the blocks from kickoff. Cauley Woodrow was played through on goal, but his shot was parried by Max O’Leary. From the resulting corner, Michal Helik’s towering header gave them the lead just one minute into game.

This really wasn’t part of the script. In fact, this was just Barnsley’s second goal so far this campaign, and it had come within a matter of second against one of the most impressive teams of the 2020/21 season so far. Memories of Struber seemed to be distant at best, with the Tykes coming out as a completely different side.

A frenetic start to the first half ensued, with Bristol City immediately hunting for an equaliser. Barnsley felt confident enough so sit off the Robins and try to hit them on the counter when the opportunity arose. Nahki Wells almost grabbed a first half equaliser for the away side, but his shot was cleared off the line.

Dean Holden, clearly frustrated with his side’s performance thus far, had to take his side into half-time at 1-0 down. This wasn’t what we came to expect from the high-flying Robins, who had scored eight goals in just four league games this season.

That frustration clearly had an impact on his side, as like Tykes did in the first half, the Robins came out full of attacking intent in search of an equaliser. It took just two minutes into the second half for them to get back on level terms, with Jack Hunt’s long range effort fizzing into the Barnsley net.

A mere three minutes later, Bristol City found themselves in the lead. The ball fell to Tyreeq Bakinson outside the penalty area, his rather tame shot took a deflection and bobbled past Jack Walton in the Barnsley net. The game was turned on its head just five minutes into the second half. Barnsley, already devoid of confidence from their poor start to the season, had a mountain to climb.

With four minutes added on at the end, a horrifying head clash between Callum O’Dowda and Michael Sollbauer saw the Tykes given a last gasp penalty. An eerie silence deafened Oakwell, as a the Austrian defender lay motionless before being stretchered off with a neck brace. Woodrow didn’t pass up the chance to earn his side a draw, smashing the ball past O’Leary to win Barnsley’s second point of the season.

This was always going to be an incredibly tough game for the Tykes. Bristol City had won their opening four games before Saturday’s defeat. The departure of Gerhard Struber to New York Red Bulls was a massive blow, despite Barnsley’s underwhelming start to the season. The Austrian was held in high regard at Oakwell after he miraculously saved them from relegation on the final day of last season.

While the circumstances of the late equaliser were far from ideal, it shows the incredible resolve and mental strength from this Barnsley side to earn a point after such a poor run of form. They were never out of the game and stood toe-to-toe with their invigorated opponents. Both of Bristol City’s goals took deflections before ending up in the net, and they struggled to create clear-cut chances against the Tykes’ defence.

Perhaps this will worry Robins fans ahead of some tough fixtures. Dean Holden’s side had won all of their league games before visiting Oakwell, and often looked slow and lethargic against one of the league’s weaker sides. But confidence has to stem from the fact that they should’ve won the game, was it not for the horrific clash of heads resulting at a penalty with second to spare.

Few would’ve expected Bristol City to be contenders for automatic promotion, and thus far this season Dean Holden has proved the doubters wrong. His side still sit top of the league ahead of testing fixtures against the likes of Swansea, Bournemouth and Norwich. With previous manager Lee Johnson having managed the club for four years, it’s clear that it’ll take time for Holden to fully implement his style and philosophy on the players. Thus far, however, he’s done a very good job.

While Bristol City could argue that they deserved more from the match, a point each seemed a fair outcome. Bristol City, for all their quality, paid the price for not finishing the job, while Barnsley were awarded for their courage and refusal to give in – a trait that will do them well as they search for a new manager.

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