Been away since Bolton.
htfcreports.com/2024/10/06/palpable-relief/ Palpable Relief
It was a far from perfect performance which finally lifted the gloom surrounding Duff’s misfiring squad, but a deserved win against desperately poor opponents promises an upturn in fortunes which now must be delivered.
Recent home disasters, a careless defeat at Reading and luckily avoiding a mauling at St Andrews created a backdrop of nervous anxiety for a Yorkshire derby, as a season of promise was in danger of turning very sour, very early if it had not already done so.
Injuries, lack of form and a paucity of options up front demanded some creativity from Michael Duff, and his pairing of Kasumu and Hodge with Wiles playing further forward and more central was yet another stab at finding a harmonious midfield trio.
At the back, Lees’ recent form finally caught up with him and Pearson stepped in as the centre of a back 3 which, at long last, contained pace and at least a modicum of passing ability either side of the robust stand in skipper.
Chapman, who acquitted himself well in the two away defeats, kept out the returning Maxwell.
In the opening exchanges, Town flattered to deceive with nicely constructed approach play breaking down too easily in the final third and it was the visitors who threatened first, forcing a good save from Chapman from a free kick conceded by Hodge who was also booked for the foul from behind after he had lost possession.
After that scare, Town took a grip of the first half and should really have taken advantage of several good moves and periods of pressure which saw Slonina make good saves to deny Marshall and Kasumu, while his defenders blocked other attempts from Bojan and the lively Marshall, again.
While imperfect, and somewhat fragile, Town’s first half showing was encouraging and the shape of the side looked far more effective as Kasumu and Hodge’s energy allowed Wiles to find space and use the ball more effectively than in his too often anonymous performances of late.
With the Reds’ goal leading a charmed life, however, the concern was that an improved display needed to be capped with a goal, and just before the break, a deflected cross looped to the back post gave Cosgrove a presentable opportunity. Spencer thwarted the big man with a well timed jump and block, but could have resulted in an unjust deficit.
Town had competently dealt with Barnsley’s physicality, restricting the South Yorkshire side to a one dimensional long ball game, and pinning them back for extended periods.
Down the flanks, Miller was a constant threat, while Sorensen showed some signs of a return to form with some good link up play down the right with Spencer and Wiles, creating one particular frantic spell where Town could have scored on three separate occasions but for the resilience of the visitors’ defence. He also set up Wiles for a very good chance, but the midfielder mistimed his shot which drifted over the bar.
There were mistakes, some hesitancy born of lack of confidence and a few too many misplaced passes, but it was still the best half of football for some time.
Soon after the break, Radulovic lobbed a decent chance over the bar after capitalising on Barnsley’s central defenders and goalkeeper’s hesitancy dealing with an awkward ball in from a good Sorensen header.
Miller continued to torment the full back opposing him but couldn’t find the right cross to undo a strong Barnsley defence, while Sorensen’s propensity for hitting the first defender while trying over intricate balls in to the box led to the hosts clocking up an unusually high number of corners.
Most of these were deliberately aimed towards Slonina, presumably to try and exploit a weakness, but the men in pink stood firm.
Barnsley then came in to the game more and they enjoyed a ten minute spell of pressure which led to a well worked chance for Cosgrove, only for the target man to shoot over.
The South Yorkshire outfit also looked capable of catching Town on the break and should have done much better when Humphries made a poor decision to make a simple pass inside rather than trying to find the unmarked Cosgrove in the box.
With a scoreless derby looking increasingly likely, Town substitutes Ladapo and Kane combined to release the latter who then found Wiles with an excellent ball at the edge of the box. Taking a touch, Wiles steadied himself and found the top corner with an unstoppable drive.
With just 7 minutes and injury time to see out, Town introduced Lees to shore up a defence which had played very well.
With no further scares, Town wrapped up the points with a Kasumu strike which should probably have been saved but was nevertheless very well hit.
This was a massively important win for Duff and his misfiring squad.
Wiles as a number 10 worked. The Kasumu/Hodges axis worked. Having defensive pace either side of rock solid Pearson worked.
There is little doubt that the team lacks an instinctive striker, but Marshall’s work rate and energy could possibly dovetail with Radulovic, who doesn’t look as fragile as in his first appearances, and it is a duo which perhaps deserves a run.
Whether this was a corner turned or just steps in the right direction remains to be seen, but the team’s shape was more convincing and seemed to release rather than restrain the individuals who are capable of pushing Town towards the top 6.
A little more calmness on the ball would be welcome, as would improved decision making in the final third, but the boosting of confidence from a deserved victory should help.
