Play-Offs Past – Barnsley v Swansea City

So the Swans will take on Barnsley in the play off semi finals with a first leg taking place at Oakwell on 17th May and the second at the Liberty just five days later.   As we build up to the game we take a painful trip down memory lane to our only previous play off meeting with Barnsley.

A painful day in the capital where the Swans hopes of a second win inside two months at the Millennium Stadium were ended with a play off final defeat in the cruellest of fashions.

The Planet Swans Match Report

Having experienced the pain of a play off final defeat before I thought nothing could ever eclipse a last minute free kick as the worst way to lose. I was wrong. Seeing your season end on a penalty shoot out to deny you a place in the next division up is plainly extremely painful and not something I want to dwell on for too long in our shortened close season.

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I think that the worst thing about penalty shoot outs are they create villains where maybe there should be none. We were the better team over the 120 minutes and should have wrapped it up before it came to penalties but we didn’t and that created the biggest pun as we paid the ultimate penalty.

I would honestly love to give you a massive breakdown of the match – a minute by minute blow account – but I seriously can’t as the game passed by in a haze of nail bitting, head in hands moments, sheer unadulterated joy at times and a period of clock watching. I will try but I can’t promise chapter and verse

As expected, Kenny Jackett sent an unchanged side out from the one that triumphed so well at Brentford what seems like an eternity ago. One change on the bench saw the fit again Kevin McLeod back in the squad at the expense of Adrian Forbes

Big Willy

Tatey Stone Cold Monk Sam

Big Leon KOL OTJ Robbo

Ickle Leon Rory

Subs: Murphy, Macca, LT10, Bayo, Williams

As I said short of the goals, little stands out in the game because of the nerves but here goes with the goals

Swans 0 Barnsley 1 – A cross from Barnsley’s right is flicked backwards by Austin in an attempt to clear but it falls nicely at the feet of Paul Hayes who strikes a clean crisp shot into the bottom corner to give them the lead

Swans 1 Barnsley 1 – The goal of the game. A ball in the air in the penalty area is met by a flying kiwi with a left footed scissors kick and back across the keeper and into the corner. Da Da Da Da Rory Fallon

Swans 2 Barnsley 1 – A poor shot from Robbo is inexplicable pushed into the back of his own net by Colgan and the Swans are ahead before half time.

Swans 2 Barnsley 2 – Nardiello hits a low free kick around the wall and within a cats whisker of Willy who cannot move in time to prevent the equaliser and the ground atmosphere is reversed with more noise for the time being from the red end.

So that’s about an hour of the game in the nutshell, now fast forward to five minutes to go and a cross from their left sees a Barnsley man ghost in at the back post surely to score the winner? Nope, his downward header is so downward it has time to bounce back up and over the bar. Phew sighs the black and white end

Two minutes later we watch Alan Tate latch onto a Britton (?) pass. Hit it Tatey, Hit it. This is our moment surely? Nope, high and wide and the game goes to extra time. Only fair to say here that there were more chances than the two described but they were the best non-goal chances for either side and the ones that stick out

Best chance in extra time falls to Trunds who screws wide from six yards after a typically mazy run. Penalties and the misses fall to Bayo who shoots over after pausing and Tate who sees his saved by Colgan which confirms Barnsley’s place in the Championship next season and heartbreak for 34000 Jacks inside the ground.

And so what started out as an adventure against Tranmere back in August ends with great pain in Cardiff on May bank holiday weekend. In just over three weeks the fixtures for the new season will be released and instead of scanning for trips to Sunderland, Cardiff and Coventry it’s Scunthorpe, Crewe and Carlisle on the menu once again. Unlucky today lads, you really were.

This match report was first produced on Planet Swans on 27 May 2006

Swansea manager Kenny Jackett

“It’s a bitter disappointment, particularly considering we had more chances and more of the play. I’m a little bit disappointed with the free-kick from which they scored. It looked like we offered the lad half the goal to sidefoot it into.

“But we had more than enough chances to win the game, it was almost indicative of our season.

“But what we will do is come back even stronger. We’ll make sure the disappointment we feel now will drive us on to be a more successful club next season.”

Barnsley manager Andy Ritchie

“The players were absolutely magnificent and they deserve a great deal of credit. And the crowd were also absolutely superb and the character of the players showed through.

“We always felt that we could get a goal back when we were 2-1 down and at half-time we got them to focus

“We were under the cosh at the end and one or two of the players falling down with cramp and a few had injuries as well.

They were a bit quiet at half-time which worried me a little bit but it’s absolutely tremendous. I can’t put it into words”

Barnsley goalkeeper Nick Colgan

“I wanted the roof to open up and take me up after my mistake. But that’s the nature of goalkeeping, one minute you are the villain and the next you are a hero.

“If we’d lost 2-1 – no matter what has happened during the season – I would have been remembered for that reason.”