Conor Hourihane given chance to shine at Barnsley after being headed interim reins following the axing of Darrell Clarke at League One club

CONOR Hourihane has been handed a chance to potentially put himself in contention to be a candidate for the full-time Barnsley head coach post after being named as the interim replacement for Darrell Clarke.

The Reds confirmed the departure of Clarke, after just 293 days in charge, on Wednesday afternoon, with the League One outfit now looking for their twelfth full-time appointment in a decade.

Ex-Oakwell favourite and captain Hourihane, 34, who rejoined the club last summer following his departure from Derby County, will take charge of the club's final 10 games of the campaign.

He will be assisted by Jon Stead and Martin Devaney alongside Tom Harban, who will step up from the under-21s set-up.

Darrell Clarke and coach Conor Hourihane look on during the recent Sky Bet League One match at Northampton Town. Photo by Pete Norton/Getty Images.

His first game in charge will be at Mansfield Town on Saturday.

Chairman Neerav Parekh said: "We would like to thank Darrell for his efforts in a season which has been difficult for various reasons.

"Darrell has worked extremely hard to try and get the team competitive and pushing for promotion, unfortunately, we find ourselves eight points away from the play-offs and feel that a change is needed."

A combination of poor recruitment in the winter window, inconsistent results, especially at home and injuries have ensured that the Reds have dropped out of serious play-off contention in the second half of the current campaign. They are eight points adrift of the top six.

Darrell Clarke, who was sacked by Barnsley on Wednesday afternoon. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe

Meanwhile, sporting director Mladen Sormaz has confirmed that concerns over Barnsley's style of play was also a factor in the decision to dispense with the services of Clarke.

It echoes par of the reasoning behind the move to axe Clarke's predecessor Neill Collins last April, alongside concern with results.

Sormaz added: "Whilst a list of replacements has been identified, we will take some time to ensure the next appointment is the right one with a focus on playing identity, returning to high pressing and attacking football.

"We believe that Conor can help to create enough bounce to keep us fighting for the top six until the end of the season. We will also be working in parallel to have a new head coach in place over the summer.”

Clarke signed a two-year contract at Oakwell with a club option of a third when he was appointed last May.