Heckingbottom is happy for Reds to be underdogs

Ten years ago tomorrow, to be precise, when he and his Barnsley team-mates stepped out at Walsall for their last regular game of the 2005-06 season – aiming to rubber-stamp a third-tier play-off berth with rivals breathing down their necks, just like now.

A decade ago, the chasers were seventh-placed Nottingham Forest, clinging onto the hope that either of the two sides above them, Barnsley and Swansea City, would fail to win their final-day appointment, allowing them to gatecrash the top-six with victory at Bradford City.

For Forest back then, read Scunthorpe and Gillingham in the present, with the pair banking on the Reds slipping up at Wigan to let either into the play-offs through the back door.

Heckingbottom’s memory of the events of May 6, 2006 at Walsall’s Bescot Stadium is hazy – if not the outcome.

In the event, Barnsley – then managed by Andy Ritchie – triumphed 2-1, Daniel Nardiello firing home a late penalty to seal victory, but not before Heckingbottom gave away a spot-kick to allow Walsall to cancel out Marc Richards’s opener.

A similar outcome, albeit with a bit less drama, at the DW Stadium on Sunday lunch-time would certainly please Heckingbottom.

On the correlation between this weekend and those events at Walsall, the Reds caretaker head coach said: “You take it any which way and I would take that again; a 2-1. Although I honestly cannot remember the day.

“But we all know what is at stake like then and every game that we play in now will be monumental.

“It is a big challenge, but there is no mistaking what we have to go and do.

“We were hoping to be in this position for the last game and we are in it.

“I would rather be in the position we are in and we are pleased where we are and are delighted we have got ourselves in the mix and now it is down to finishing the job.”

That Barnsley must head over the Pennines to a Wigan side who are to all intents and purposes champions of League One barring the formality of mathematical confirmation is a quirk of the fixture list that most would see as far from ideal.

Wigan, who will take the field amid a carnival atmosphere after clinching promotion – and in all likelihood silverware – last weekend after a 4-0 seaside routing of Blackpool, have not seen their colours lowered on home soil since December 12.

Yet given events on Saturday when Colchester belied their relegated status to deliver a stirring Oakwell performance which ended in them stunning the homefaithful with a last-gasp leveller, Heckingbottom does not see the underdog tag that his side may be afforded as necessarily being a bad thing. Quite the contrary.

Heckingbottom added: “Everyone had given us the three points against Colchester and that was the feel, walking about beforehand. It was wrong and I can’t stand it; it is one of my bugbears. Football is not like that.

“Likewise, I have felt the opposite in that we have the toughest game against the champions away from home. Football is that fickle that people think it is done and dusted before we turn up; It might work in our advantage.

“It is a massive challenge, we know that. Let’s go and take it on and see where we get.

“All the games have been massive as we have been chasing everything and every game has been big. We are pleased to be where we are and will meet it head on.”

Barnsley fans have already sampled two special occasions in the north-west this season, with pride of place arriving on February 4 when they booked a place at Wembley after a dramatic penalty shoot-out success at Fleetwood in their Johnstone’s Paint Trophy northern section final second leg.

Two months earlier, the Reds required penalties to claim another sweet victory in the same competition, ironically at the home of Sunday’s opponents to advance to the northern section showpiece.

The merits of a third famous victory cannot be overestimated and Barnsley most definitely will not be lacking on the supporter stakes on Sunday either.

He added: “Wigan are champions and their display at Oakwell scored what they are about.

“They are the best team in the league. But we played well against them away from home in the cup and our away form has been good and I think we will pose any teams problems away from home.

“We have to embrace the challenge; we are going to sell 4,500 tickets which is amazing and they are part of this journey and ride and occasion.

“The atmosphere will be fantastic and the Wigan crowd will be celebrating. But we are there to go and do a job and we must have a determination and drive to spur us on, the fans as well.

“Wigan have achieved their goal and we are still fighting for ours and we go there as hungry as possible.”