Barnsley FC boss Neill Collins on experiencing a full Oakwell for the first time against Derby County and Reds being in 'a good place' ahead of key League One clash

The Reds will attract comfortably their biggest home attendance of the season so far, with over 17,000 tickets sold already - with Derby to be backed by a sizeable sold-out travelling contingent of 5,107.

The previous-best home gate at Oakwell in 2023-24 came on the opening day of the campaign when 13,769 saw the hosts’ thumping 7-0 victory over Port Vale.

Saturday will provide Collins with the sight of a bumper home crowd for the first time and envisaging such moments was one of the reasons why he was so keen to come to the club last summer.

Collins, whose side are six points behind the second-placed Rams, with a game in hand, said: "That’s a big part of the reason, because I know what the potential is and I think we’ll see a lot of that here on Saturday.

"I think we’ve seen it grow and grow through the season. I think the last home game was a bit special, while our away following this season has been fantastic.

"This game comes at a great point in the season for everyone."

Barnsley head into the game with a strong hand to pick from and in a ‘good place, according to Collins, who acknowledges that he has some key decisions to make.

The main one is up front, with Sam Cosgrove starting ahead of John McAtee last weekend, with the former Aberdeen player justifying the call by way of a key goal in the 2-1 success at Fleetwood.

Collins, who provided fitness updates on Josh Benson and Fabio Jalo in his pre-match press conference on Thursday morning, added: "You are looking for decisions, but sometimes there’s better ones than others.

“When you have the decisions between two or three good players to pick as opposed to feeling you don’t have many options and are thinking about a solution, that’s a more difficult decision.

"It’s a really good place in respect of some of the decisions that we’ve got to make.

"Everyone is available from last weekend. Josh (Benson) has been really good and trained, so the plan will be to get him minutes in the (under) 21s next week.

"He’s obviously missed a lot of football and it’s great to have him back training.

"The challenge with Josh is how we can do best to keep him available and fit. We are hoping to get him back and have him available for the last 12 to 13 games. He’d be a big addition.

"He (Jalo) has still got a role to play this season. How big that is will depend of getting him back up to speed.”