Tom Edwards felt disappointed to lose on Wednesday night but believes players will have gained vital experience after bowing out of the Papa John's Trophy.
The Reds exited the Papa John's Trophy at the last 32 stage, going down 2-1 at Port Vale last night. On-loan defender Tom Edwards came off the bench to grab a first goal in Barnsley colours but it wasn't enough for Michael Duff's young side on the night.
Edwards reckons that whilst there's sadness in defeat, the experience gained for many of the players used in this season's competition will stand them in good stead moving forward in their careers.
"It's a disappointment to lose the game but I think the younger players who came in deserved their opportunity and they should keep their heads high.
"They're working hard every day in training and they'll have taken a lot from tonight, it's something to kick on from."
It was a tough half-an-hour for the Reds before half time as the hosts surged into a two-goal lead after Barnsley had initially taken the game to Vale.
Tom believes the performance improved after the break once the players got to grips with the way the game was panning out on a difficult surface against strong opposition.
"We had a right go in the second half," Edwards told us. "They're a big side, the conditions weren't ideal for getting it down to play and I felt we got to grips with that as the game played out.
"At half time we were open, we had a chat and discussed what was going wrong. Everyone took that onboard and again, disappointing result but we gave it a good go in the second half."
On a personal note, grabbing a goal against Port Vale was especially pleasing for Edwards who is Stoke City through and through.
"That's only my second career goal so I've been waiting a very long time!" Edwards admitted, smiling.
"But to come at this place against Port Vale, I couldn't have asked for a better time for it to come really."
