Barnsley FC: How double over Manchester City made Reds realise they could make it to the Premier League

It was an occasion that former Reds defender Adi Moses will never forget.

Manchester City, a powerhouse of the global game these days – let alone in England – visited Oakwell for a second-tier fixture on December 28, 1996.

Unlike today, the Blues were ensconced in a grim relegation battle whereas their opponents were the ones who were upwardly mobile.

How times have changed since.

In their last four games against City, Barnsley have shipped 20 goals en route to four comprehensive defeats.

The festive season of 1996 was somewhat different. A 2-0 win over City in front of a then season-best Oakwell crowd of 17,159 saw Danny Wilson’s Barnsley – who beat promotion rivals Sheffield United in another keynote win just before Christmas – consolidate second place in the First Division.

A 20th-minute penalty from Jovo Bosancic put Barnsley in front before Moses doubled the hosts’ tally just after the half-hour mark with a rare goal as the Reds secured a first league double over City.

A Ceefax-themed mug recalling the scorers and the scoreline serves as a permanent reminder of that special winter’s day in the Moses household.

A special day in a special 1996-97 season which ended in a historic promotion to the top-flight for the first time.

Moses told The Yorkshire Post: “You do the double over Man City and think: ‘Right, this is on the cards now.’

“Our momentum just kept going… I joke with my lads about it at home because of how big Man City have got now and say: ‘Well, we’ve all scored against Man City.’

“A friend of mine was in the away end when I scored that header and she still lives in the same village as me now and she still remembers that goal. She went to watch with her mum.

“I played left wing-back. Danny used to do that with me and knew I was quite versatile and he’d stick me anywhere across the back four. In the Premier League season, he gave me man-marking jobs against Steve McManaman, Marc Overmars and David Ginola.

“I was up against Nicky Summerbee and I had a bit of a job to do on him as he was tricky and goes to cross and feints and cuts back and I remember Danny telling me about that on the training ground.

“He said:‘Don’t be frightened. He won’t get a kick.’

“In that team, they also had (Georgi) Kinkladze as well and I remember looking at him and thinking: ‘If there’s going to be a test for me personally this year, this is it.’

“As the game progressed, I got quite into it and enjoyed going forward. I was not worried about Summerbee who I thought might have ‘cheated’ in not tracking back and just thought: ‘I’ve got acres here.’

“And that’s what happened with my goal.

“I remember in the first half kicking to the Pontefract Road end that I was in front of the East Stand running down the left wing and as I was on the opposite side of the pitch to Danny, so he was not saying: ‘Adi, stay back – what I have I told you.’

“I remember Shez (Darren Sheridan) getting the ball and I saw a big gap and I just ran there. I thought ‘Sod it’.

“Shez picked me out and put it on a sixpence and I headed it over the keeper.

“At half-time, Danny was absolutely buzzing and said: ‘That’s bravery, son. I f**ing love that.’ I felt 10ft tall as it would have been easy for me not to go forward.”

It was in the reverse fixture at City’s old Maine Road home in early September – or more especially on the coach ride home – when Moses first began to think that Barnsley could be at the start of something momentous – and so it proved.

A brace from Clint Marcelle gave the Reds a 2-1 success, their fourth at the start of that epic campaign, and even some seasoned professionals openly started to wonder.

Moses recalled: “On the first day of the season, we went and won at West Brom and people said: ‘That’s a result.’ Not long after we went to Maine Road and people were saying: ‘We’ve started well here.’

“I remember being sat on the team bus and Neil Thompson, who had been around, said: ‘You don’t get carried away, but I tell you what; we’ve got a right chance this season.’ I was used to Barnsley being seen as a ‘little’ club, but I was sat there on the bus thinking: ‘Wow, that is some statement.’

“We continued to get results and people were going: ‘Hang on a minute, it is not a joke.’ And we were up there on merit. We were in the top two all season.”

It was a season of outstanding highs on the pitch and iron-clad togetherness off it. Lifelong bonds were forged and mention 96-97 to every Barnsley supporter and the smiles will quickly radiate from Cudworth to Cawthorne and Penistone to Pogmoor.

More especially in these difficult times where there is not much to necessarily smile about from a Reds’ perspective.

Moses continued: “They were fantastic days and it was a great coming together. It was such a close-knit group and the club and the staff were.

“You’d go down to the tea ladies’ room and have a cup of tea after training and Rimmo (Norman Rimmington) would be in there telling you stories and the groundsmen would come in having their dinner. It wouldn’t really happen now.

“It was just such a good coming together of Danny and Eric (Winstanley). Danny brought in some really good signings.

“We had some great senior pros.

“I have a lot of time for Redders (Neil Redfearn) and he was a leader on the pitch.

“He was not vocal in the dressing room, but he’d put an arm around you and was a great captain for me and all the young lads.

“But where Redders did his leading was on the pitch. He’d drag you forward and if you were getting beat or not playing well, he’d stick one in the top corner from 25 yards.

“Eric also deserves a lot of credit for getting a crop of good young lads coming through. Under Eric, we won the Intermediate League for three years running.

“It was a masterstroke for Eric to then work with the first team as we’d never let him down as we knew what his standards were like. It was a win-win.

“I remember once when we played Blackburn at home in the Premier League and all of the back five had come through the youth team.

“Watty (David Watson) in the net, Nicky (Eaden) at right-back, me and Morgs (Chris Morgan) as centre-halves and Scott Jones as left-back.

“It was a proud time and to always be remembered for being part of that is amazing.”