A trio of reasons why Barnsley can beat the drop

Namely that their ‘core group’ of players, which head coach Gerhard Struber likes to call them, have made a discernible impact at second-tier level in 2019-20 and proved themselves – even if the worst comes to the worst and the Reds are relegated.

Among those is Conor Chaplin, a forward who started the season as a Championship novice, but who will end it as a player whose contribution will have been duly recognised and respected.

The 12-goal former Portsmouth player eclipsed his career-best goals tally for a season with a couple of months of 2019-20 to go and was named as the Championship’s player of the month for December following an eye-catching six-goal haul over the festive month.

Fellow strikers Cauley Woodrow – whose total of 14 league goals this term is the sixth best in the division – and Jacob Brown, on the radar of several rivals, have also walked the walk along with captain Alex Mowatt.

The odds are on all continuing their journeys at this level next season and in the years to come, but for Chaplin and his team-mates, the only thing that matters is the here and now and staving off relegation when football resumes in the red of Barnsley.

Chaplin said: “I don’t think that it (own futures) is anything that any of the lads are thinking of in terms of personal aspirations or things in the dressing room.

“Everyone is really focused on keeping this club in this division.

“The club comes before any of the individuals in the dressing room and all of the lads are pulling in the right direction and same one.”

The table may show that Barnsley prop up the Championship, but a collective haul of 27 league goals between their three main forwards are statistics that you would not associate with a team at the bottom of the rankings.

Chaplin is the first to admit that he has benefitted from being thrust into a more advanced central role by Struber and the numbers bear this out, with 10 of his 11 league goals all arriving under the watch of the Austrian.

“Playing on the last line has definitely helped, whether that be in a withdrawn or a wide role,” Chaplin added.

“You are closer to the goal, so naturally get more chances.

“In terms of how his (Struber’s) team set up and the way he likes his midfielders to play in terms of being positive on the ball, it is something that really plays into my hands in terms of getting behind the defenders and sniffing out chances that way.

“We also all compliment each other really well. In terms of the things I cannot do, Browny and Cauley can and likewise.

“I am aiming for 15 goals and to get more goals to help the team as much as possible. If me, Browny and Cauley are scoring, fingers crossed, we will be picking up points.”

When Barnsley restart their Great Escape bid, the statistics do not make for pleasant reading.

With nine games of the season to go, the Oakwell outfit are seven points adrift of safety. A difficult task to arrest the situation, but not an insurmountable one.

On Barnsley’s safety points target, Chaplin said: “Within the group, we probably know, although I won’t say it in public.

“That is an in-house thing and we know we must strive to get to a certain points tally to hopefully see us get over the line. A lot of teams are playing each other. But it is the same message, we have got to focus on ourselves. If we win games ourselves, we know other teams will drop points.

“We are going to drop points, we know that. We are not stupid to think that the bottom six teams are going to go on big winning streaks.

“Teams are going to drop points and pick up wins in and around us. It has been crazy in terms of the bottom teams picking up points against teams higher up the table. But that is something that the Championship is renowned for, it is a crazy league and something that makes it more exciting.”