The draw for the Fourth Round of this year's FA Cup has just been made and if Barnsley manage to see off Southend in the Third Round Replay at Oakwell next Tuesday they will face a tasty away tie at either Championship rivals Cardiff City or Premiership Tottenham Hotspur.
Barnsley drew 1-1 at Roots Hall on Saturday thanks to a last gasp scrambled effort from youngster Michael Coulson whilst Cardiff and Tottenham played out a 0-0 draw at Ninian Park yesterday.
The Reds replay with Southend on Tuesday 16th January 2007 at Oakwell at 7:45pm
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Tottenham and Cardiff replay at White Hart Lane the following night, Wednesday 17th January 2007 at 8pm.
If The Reds win through and face Cardiff they will once again be reunited with Oakwell old boys, Peter Ridsdale, Stephen McPhail and Michael Chopra.
The promotion chasers won 2-1 at Oakwell on the opening day of the season and if Cardiff v Barnsley is the Fourth Round tie it will come just a week before the corresponding league fixture between the two sides on Friday 2nd February live on SKY.
It would also be the first time Barnsley have played in the city since that famous day back in May....
If The Reds win through to face Tottenham it will rekindle the battles of just a few years ago.
Back in 1998 when Barnsley were in the Premiership they also met in the Fourth Round at White Hart Lane, the tie finished 1-1 with a Neil Redfearn penalty equalising a strike from Sol Campbell and The Reds were terrific in the replay winning 3-1 courtesy of strikes from Ashley Ward, Neil Redfearn and a stunner from Darren Barnard.
Barnsley then famously defeated Manchester United the Fifth Round before losing at Newcastle in the Quarter Finals.
Barnsley and Tottenham then met again the following year this time at the Quarter-Final stage when a stunning solo effort from David Ginola saw Tottenham win 1-0.
Tottenham were also then eliminated by Newcastle in the Semi-Finals.
Chairman Gordon Shepherd talked to www.barnsleyfc.co.uk about the draw:
"Of course we are semi-pleased with that. Every club of our size would love a home draw against a huge club or similarly an away tie at one of the big four for the financial aspects of a game like that. Playing Tottenham or Cardiff City should still be a reasonable pay day for us and it would also be an enjoyable day out for our supporters.
"However, we still have to get past Southend United and I am sure that they will want to face Tottenham or Cardiff just as much as us.
"I think we would prefer Tottenham really because they are the Premiership club and it would be a huge challenge for our team. It would be a game to look forward to and a great day out for our fans".
Full FA Cup Fourth Round Draw:
Arsenal v Bolton
West Ham v Watford
Bristol City or Coventry City v Hull City or Middlesbrough
Chelsea v Nottingham Forest
Chester City or Ipswich Town v Swansea
Cardiff City or Tottenham v Southend Utd or Barnsley
Barnet or Colchester v Peterborough or Plymouth Argyle
Birmingham City or Newcastle United v Reading or Burnley
Derby County v Bristol Rovers
Sheffield Wednesday or Manchester City v Southampton
Crystal Palace v Preston North End
Manchester United v Portsmouth
Blackpool v Norwich City
Queens Park Rangers or Luton Town v Blackburn Rovers
Wolverhampton Wanderers or Oldham v WBA
Leicester City or Fulham v Stoke City
The ties will be played on Friday 26, Saturday 27 and Sunday 28 January.