Barnsley 3 Ipswich Town 5: Barnsley stunned by Ipswich Oakwell fightback

Barnsley, 2-0 up at half-time, seemed to be coasting to a fifth successive league win.

Ipswich, staring down the barrel of an eighth straight defeat, looked powerless to prevent their calamitous slide. But not for nothing is football a funny old game.

Within 22 seconds of the restart, Ipswich had pulled a goal back.

Daryl Murphy’s cross from the left was headed clear by Bobby Hassell to the edge of the penalty area, where Keith Andrews lashed a sweet volley past Luke Steele’s despairing left hand. Three minutes later, Ipswich were level.

Andrews ghosted into the six-yard box to meet Aaron Creswell’s left-wing cross with a thumping header as Barnsley’s defence switched off.

Anyone who had changed television channels to watch Strictly Come Dancing, confident there would no be no surprises in the live Saturday tea-time action from Oakwell, was being made to regret their foolish decision.

On 66 minutes, Ipswich improbably skipped in front.

Danny Collins met Lee Martin’s corner with a powerful header to spark jubilant scenes among the visiting players, who might lately have been renamed Strictly Come Second.

As confidence surged through Ipswich and drained from Barnsley, the visitors went 4-2 in front on 68 minutes.

Jason Scotland fed Lee Bowyer, whose neat first-time pass played in Michael Chopra, who sunk a 12-yard effort with the aid of Steele’s left-hand post.

Delight turned to delirium among the 370 visiting supporters when Scotland put Ipswich 5-2 ahead on 83 minutes, Creswell again providing an inviting cross which the striker slotted home with the sort of languid air befitting a man who hails from Trinidad.

Scotland became more influential as the game wore on and linked up well with Chopra, who had a loan spell at Barnsley during the 2004-05 campaign.

Stunned by their side’s unexpected implosion, a good number of the 9,107 crowd had already left by the time Craig Davies scored an 89th-minute consolation.

Davies wrapped his right foot around a 25-yard free-kick, sending the ball fizzing into the top right-hand corner of the net to restore a semblance of pride to an unhappy scoreline.

Earlier, Davies had powered Barnsley in front with a 14th minute penalty after Ipswich goalkeeper David Stockdale upended Danny Drinkwater as he tried to take the ball around him.

Drinkwater had to leave the field soon after with a thigh injury in a blow that upset manager Keith Hill’s plans but which failed to disturb the home side’s rhythm.

Ricardo Vaz Te doubled the advantage on 39 minutes with a stooping header from Jacob Butterfield’s corner, at which stage Barnsley’s ascension to seventh place – just two points and one place outside the play-offs – seemed a formality.

But they had no answer to a breathless second-half assault that might have yielded more goals had Ipswich enjoyed better fortune and sharper finishing.

As it was, the remarkable turnaround saw the visitors avert their worst losing run since the 1994-95 season.

Barnsley, who would have equalled their best winning run since 1996-97 had they prevailed, can rarely have delivered a more Jekyll and Hyde display.

In the first half they treated the watching nation to a stylish exhibition, looking every inch potential promotion candidates.

They moved the ball around with flair and fluidity as the Ipswich players were left to chase shadows.

The midfield was marshalled by the energetic Butterfield, while Vaz Te and Davies were lively up front.

There appeared a tangible gulf in class between the sides – so much so that Barnsley’s supporters were even able to raise a half-smile when Ipswich defender Ibrahima Sonko sliced against his own post in the 38th minute.

For the fact was it hardly seemed to matter, such was Barnsley’s dominant attacking play. But something happened at half-time, something that changed the complexion of the contest.

According to Hill, the visitors might simply have reached “rock bottom” – a point from which recoveries are often launched.

“Perhaps it was what you’d call fight or flight syndrome,” he reflected. “After that, Ipswich came out and showed what good players they are. We should have done better with at least three of the goals they scored, but you can’t take away anything from them.

“Their second-half performance was excellent and there was no arrogance or lack of application from my players.” However, Hill conceded tiredness might have played a part in his team’s demise.

Barnsley have conceded eight second-half goals on two successive Saturdays, something the manager is keen to address.

“There’s a possibility there’s a little bit of tiredness in the players and we’ve tailed off a bit in games lately,” he said.

“It might be a time where I need to freshen it up a bit and not be tunnel-visioned in respect of a team that’s just won us a game starting the next game.”

Although Hill’s concerns were justified, there are also occasions when you have to take off your hat and salute your opponents.

With Andrews lifting up Ipswich by the scruff of the neck, the visitors were unrecognisable from the team that had earlier appeared to be there for the taking.

A 2-0 lead in football is commonly held to be the most vulnerable, and Ipswich proved the verity of that wisdom.

How Barnsley respond will be fascinating to behold, with Hill set to find out much about his players during next Saturday’s difficult trip to second-placed West Ham.