Barnsley threw away an early two-goal advantage before Scott Banks rescued a point late on against AFC Wimbledon. It was a game Barnsley boss Conor Hourihane called a “rollercoaster”.

The Tykes are fighting to make sure they don’t get dragged into a relegation battle. They are currently six points above the drop, but have two games in hand over Burton Albion in 21st.

With Burton still in the FA Cup, Hourihane’s side had a chance to widen the gap between the two sides.

When new signing Tom Bradshaw made it 2-0 after 14 minutes, it looked like they would.

However, the visitors scored two in two minutes and eventually took the lead in the 74th. Luckily, Barnsley’s Scott Banks scored in the 87th minute to rescue a point, something Hourihane labelled as “bizarre”.

Conor Hourihane On ‘Bizarre‘ Outcome 

Speaking to the Yorkshire Post after his side picked up a point at Oakwell, Hourihane said:

“It was another rollercoaster game that we were always involved in. We started the game really well and then gave two poor goals away.

“Then they went 3-2 up off the back of another poor goal. And then we ended up getting a draw out of it, which is bizarre thinking about just getting a draw after the first 20-odd minutes or so.”

What Positives Can Barnsley Take From the Game?

Throwing away the early two-goal lead won’t sit well with any Tykes’ fans, but there was one positive from the game.

When Davis Keillor-Dunn left for Wrexham in January, there were concerns about where their goals would come from.

Hourihane brought in former Tykes forward Bradshaw, who played alongside David McGoldrick against the Dons. 

The pair both scored early on, and if they can make that a regular habit, Barnsley will be able to steer away from the drop zone.

Reyes Cleary will likely have a big role to play in the two scoring as well. The young winger assisted both of their goals, and the experienced strikers will likely be leaning on him until the end of the season.

Will Barnsley Beat the Drop?

The South Yorkshire side have a healthy cushion between themselves and the relegation zone, as well as games in hand to play. 

That’s reflected in the Opta supercomputer League One table prediction. Barnsley are predicted to finish 12th on 61.66 points, just over 10 points more than Wigan Athletic in 21st.

In fact, the supercomputer gives them a higher probability of being promoted via the play-offs (5.46%) than being relegated (1.78%).