Barnsley conquer Keepmoat

By: Oli | October 18th, 2009

A 'Smash-and-Grab Raid'?

I woke up this morning with one overpowering memory of the game. I can remember us being over-run in midfield, with Doncaster pinging the ball around at will. I can also remember us winning. So, did we get lucky or was this a tactical masterpiece.

We set out with a defensive formation, no doubt in an attempt to throttle the spark out of Doncaster’s attackers. And, on reflection, in worked, we gave them very few, almost no chances. The defence played very well, especially Moore and Dickinson. But, the real story of the first half is in midfield, where we were totally out classed. The central midfielders were Colace and Doyle, and the attacking pairing used by Donny out classed them in terms of ball wining and creativity. Unfortunately, I don’t have access to the stats for possession by area, but we had minimal possession anywhere near the half-way line. There was no creative spark, which led to very few attacks.

So, it would seem that as Hammill turned Hume’s corner round his near post marker and slammed in past the keeper, we had got lucky. But, had we. Robin’s had come out with a defensive team, and with the tired Hallfredsson supposed to provide all the drive forward there was little hope for either team at first. But, we seemed to have it all planned out as on rolls Anderson (55 minutes) and Butterfield (60 minutes), instantly slowing down the tiring Doncaster midfield, and turning the tide of the game slowly around, to the point where the goal was not against the run of play.

We did get lucky in the sense that Donny have problems converting their pretty passing moves, and they often seem to out play team, like us, and then lose. I should emphasize that we were the worst team on the day, with all of the skill seeming to be drained out of our attackers. A better team would have beaten us.

Over 3,000 raucous Reds supporters turned out to drown out the home crowd, and to witness the first time we have won three in a row since our successful relegation fight in 2007. Our support will only increase the more times we win, and the more belief Mark Robins can install in us. Tuesday nights game should be considered as one of the best in the league, with Forest having just won four on the bounce. Just like Derby four weeks ago, it is a Tuesday night away, in almost the same geographical location. What are the odds that we take more support than we did that night?

Ratings
Luke Steele: 8 – The difference he makes can only be seen in how well the defence woks with a confident ‘keeper giving their ears some exercise.
Darren Moore MOTM: 9 – Does this man have to retire?
Carl Dickinson: 9 – His best performance for us yet.
Emil Hallfredsson (‘Alfie): 5 – His worst performance for us yet, hasn’t recovered from the international break yet.
Adam Hammill: 7 – How come he rarely scored under Davey?
Iain Hume: 7 – According to the referee, he doesn’t know how to place a ball inside a semi-circle.

Some will describe this as a ‘smash-and-grab raid’. I disagree. It’s more of a meticulously planned assassination, which we even escaped from. Question now is, will our killing spree continue, or will our streak be arrested by Forest.