Opposition Lowdown: Conor Hourihane’s Barnsley

The final game of the regular League One season is here, with Reading taking on Barnsley at the Select Car Leasing Stadium, hoping to sneak into the playoffs. Join us as we take a closer look at the opposition.

Form

Barnsley finished sixth in League One last season, securing a place in the playoffs for the second consecutive season. Unlike the previous year they were unable to make the final, losing to Bolton Wanderers 4-5 over two legs.

This season marks their third straight year in the third tier, following their relegation from the Championship in 2022, when they finished bottom of the league. The Tykes currently sit smack bang in midtable: in 12th place in the league.

Their recent form has been challenging, having seen one win, one draw and three losses in their last five games. They come into this weekend’s game off the back of a 1-2 home defeat against already relegated Shrewsbury Town.

The two sides faced each other back in November, playing out a 2-2 draw at Oakwell, with former Royal Sam Smith scoring two second-half goals.

The boss

Conor Hourihane: Hourihane was appointed Barnsley head coach on a permanent basis two weeks ago, taking over from Darrell Clarke, who was sacked after nine months in charge of the Tykes.

The Irishman had a 15-year career as a player, plying his trade as a centre midfielder, representing the likes of Plymouth Argyle, Barnsley, Aston Villa and Derby County.

Having played for the Tykes between 2014 and 2017, Hourihane returned to Barnsley as a player/coach in June 2024. He retired as a player later that year and became Darrell Clarke’s assistant. He had a six-game spell as caretaker manager following Clarke’s dismissal in March, before being offered the job on a permanent basis.

The former Republic of Ireland international was a leader on the pitch during his playing career and will be looking to take those leadership skills into his first managerial role. The 34-year-old has won one, drawn three and lost five of his nine games across his spells as caretaker and permanent head coach.

Squad

Barnsley supplemented their squad with the signings of five players in the winter transfer window, with two joining permanently and three arriving on loan.

The Tykes’ two permanent signings were wide man Neil Farrugia and American winger Jonathan Lewis, who both signed on free transfers. Their three loans were goalkeeper Joe Gauci, who joined from Aston Villa; wing-back Dexter Lembikisa, who signed from Wolverhampton Wanderers; and striker Clement Rodrigues, who joined from French side SC Bastia.

Barnsley are expected to have a number of first-team players unavailable through injury, including goalkeeper Jackson Smith, defenders Neil Farrugia and Corey O’Keefe and forwards Stephen Humphrys and Fabio Jalo.

Predicted lineup

Gauci, Bland, de Gevigney, Roberts, Earl, Lembikisa, Phillips, Connell, Russell, Cotter, Keillor-Dunn

Key player

40. Davis Keillor-Dunn: Forward Keillor-Dunn joined Barnsley in August last year, signing from Mansfield Town for an undisclosed fee.

He spent time in the youth setups at Newcastle United, Middlesbrough, Sunderland and eventually Ross County. It was at Ross County where he signed his first pro deal, making his debut for the club in 2017. He went on to make 46 appearances for County before moving to Wrexham in 2020.

Keillor-Dunn joined Oldham later that year, staying at the Latics for two seasons, scoring 28 goals. A move to Burton Albion followed, where he spent a year and a half, before then joining Mansfield Town. He won promotion to League One with the Stags last season and was named in the League Two Team of the Season.

Since signing for Barnsley last summer, the 27-year-old has netted 17 goals, making him the club’s top scorer. Keillor-Dunn can play as a centre-forward, out wide or in the number 10 role and is a good finisher who is very comfortable on the ball.

One to watch

48. Luca Connell: Midfielder Connell joined Barnsley in June 2022, joining on a free transfer following the end of his contract with Celtic.

He started his career at Bolton Wanderers, graduating from their youth team, before making 12 appearances for the club. Connell joined Celtic on a permanent deal in 2019, but he never made a first-team appearance for the club. While at Celtic he had two separate loan spells at Queens Park, representing the club 42 times and scoring 10 goals.

Since joining Barnsley, Connell has made 122 appearances for the club and has five goals and 15 assists to his name. The 24-year-old was also named club captain in August last year.

He has represented the Republic of Ireland at under-17, under-18, under-19 and under-21 level. Connell is a defensive midfielder who is a strong passer of the ball, while also being an effective set-piece taker.