After joining the Reds until the end of the season, new recruit John McAtee spoke exclusively to iFollow Barnsley.
The 24-year-old arrives in South Yorkshire from Premier League outfit Luton Town and has impressed with the Hatters as they prepared to start life in the top flight.
Now the main focus for the attacker is to make a mark on Neill Collins' side, starting with a trip to Wigan Athletic this Saturday.
"The season before last, I thought I had quite a strong season; last season, I wasn't as good as I wanted to be," commented the Salfordian. "I've got a fire in my belly at the minute now to go and put that right.
"I'm quite a confident person. I believe in myself. I've got that bit of extra hunger this year because of what happened last year—I wasn't too happy with my performances."
John is not the only McAtee to grace these parts within the football scene, with brother James winning promotion with Paul Heckingbottom's Sheffield United side last season on loan from English champions Manchester City.
Sporting talent runs through the veins of the McAtee family, with the pair's dad and grandad playing rugby league. An England World Cup winner, Alan Ball Jr., is their great-uncle. The athletic ties provide a great source of advice, McAtee discussed.
"I may have good genes; just put it down to that! I just try and work as hard as I can. My brother [James] is quite level-headed. He's quite mature, especially for his age. Speaking to him helps, as well as I do for him.
"Even with my dad and my grandad, I know it's a different sport, but it's quite similar. There are a lot of factors that are the same, so he can help with a lot of things as well. It's good."
Watch John's opening interview for the Reds in full over on iFollow Barnsley!
