Video: Barnsley 3 Walsall 0 - That was Barnsley's best home display '“ Sam Winnall

Barnsley's Sam Winnall celebrates his second goal with Adam Hammill (Picture: Bruce Rollinson).

Less than two minutes after firing home a deflected shot to put the Reds 2-0 up early in the second half on Saturday, the Reds’ top-scorer notched an eye-catching solo goal to gave the hosts a three-goal buffer ahead of Thursday’s second leg.

It took Winnall’s tally to four in two matches and 24 for the campaign, his best haul of his career so far.

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Winnall, whose 23 goals secured him the League Two golden boot at Scunthorpe in 2013-14, said: “I was obviously still elated after the first goal and when I picked the ball up, I was thinking, ‘Why not?, just have a run and see what happens’.

“Thankfully I gave myself a chance of scoring and got myself one on one and I always trust myself in those situations and back myself to score.

“I knew the magnitude of the goal and will enjoy it for a long time.”

He added: “We said in the dressing room that is probably the best we have played at home this season and to do it in such a big, big game with the pressure on is testament to us as a group.

“If you are in the play-offs in the first leg and someone said you can win 3-0, you would snap someone’s hand off.

“I’ve never been involved in a season like it or seen a season like it – to go from the bottom of the league to potentially two Wembley outings is hard to describe. But it is not about getting ahead of ourselves, regardless of how we’ve played; we have got to put it to the back of our minds now and focus on Thursday.”