The Reds will be looking for some holiday cheer as Easter weekend arrives and the first game of a double-header that could prove crucial and we've got things covered here in our big match preview.
After returning to winning ways last weekend against Fleetwood Town it's straight . back down to business as we welcome Shrewsbury Town to Oakwell in our penultimate home fixture of the Sky Bet League One season.
That victory over the Cod Army last Saturday also signalled a return to goal-scoring form for the Reds with four goals, and each scored by different players.
The 4-2 win lifted Barnsley back into the second automatic promotion spot, helped by rivals Sunderland going down 5-4 at home to Coventry City.
It leaves Daniel Stendel's side two points above both Sunderland and Portsmouth but both clubs still have a game extra to play, meaning the Reds' fate still remains out of their own hands.
But another victory in this game against a Shrewsbury outfit who are still looking over their shoulders in this season's crazy battle to survive would be another positive step forward for Barnsley.
Other than long-term injury absentee, Kenny Dougall, the Reds look likely to have a fully-fit squad available on Friday.
Central defender Liam Lindsay sat out the Fleetwood victory after picking up a knock in training last Friday but has been involved in the latter part of this week so may return to contention.
Reds coach Dale Tonge and club captain, Adam Davies spoke to the press in midweek and you can watch both of their pre-match press conference videos over on iFollow Barnsley.
Following last season’s playoff heartache, many tipped Shrewsbury Town for another top-six push this time around under the guidance of John Askey, who arrived at the Montgomery Waters Meadow from Macclesfield Town in the summer. His tenure, however, was short lived and the 54-year-old was sacked with the Shrews 18th in Sky Bet League One.
Things are a little rosier now in Shropshire, with the club currently 13th in the table after last weekend’s 2-0 triumph at Gillingham. At this stage of a normal campaign, it would be suggested that Shrewsbury could relax heading into the final four games. Not this time around. Sam Rickett’s side are just six points above the drop zone in one of the closely contested relegation scraps in recent memory.
The Shrews picked up an impressive win over Barnsley back in October – only their third League One victory of the campaign, back then. Greg Docherty, Oliver Norburn and Luke Waterfall were on target that evening – with all three amongst the club’s top scorers.
Fejiri Okenabirhie leads the way in that particular stat with nine goals in the league and 15 in all competitions – last finding the net against Southend United at the end of March.
Shrewsbury won on their last visit to Barnsley in September of 2015 but, prior to that, had only picked up maximum points at Oakwell once before during an Old Third Division clash back in 1971.
We will have LIVE coverage of the match over on iFollow Barnsley with club commentator, Matt Bailey on air from just before kick-off.
