??It
was a Boxing Day nightmare as Barnsley lost a game in which they led 2-0 for
the second time in 2025 with it also occurring in April at Leyton Orient – a
game they led 2-0 and 3-1 before losing 4-3.
It
is the first time it has happened at Oakwell since August 2024 against
Manchester United Under 21s in the EFL Trophy yet the first time at home in a
league game for exactly 14 years, occurring against Ipswich in December 2011
where they led 2-0 before eventually losing 5-3.
The
game had started so bright for the Reds who were looking to bounce back from a
horror show at Exeter prior to Christmas and they led after just two minutes
with Reyes Cleary becoming Barnsley’s earliest scorer in a game since February
2023 when Luca Connell scored in the first minute at Port Vale.
It
is the third successive home game Cleary has opened the scoring – the first
player to do this since Carlton Morris in March/April 2022 and all Cleary’s
strikes have come in the opening 10 minutes of a game.
Combined
with his eight assists Cleary has now been directly involved in 13 goals for
Barnsley this season with this his fifth strike – only Davis Keillor-Dunn with
15 involvements (14 goals 1 assist) has more this season.
Speaking
of DKD he seemed to have put the Reds on course for a comfortable win when he
scored against his old side after 13 minutes, the quickest Barnsley have been
2-0 up in a league game since March 2023 when they scored after 10 and 12
minutes against Sheffield Wednesday in a game they would go on to win 4-2.
This
is the 29th different game DKD has scored in for Barnsley and only
the fifth time they have gone on to lose (W:20 D:4 L:5)
Mansfield
pulled a goal back from the penalty spot, the 11th successive spot
kick converted against Barnsley (excluding shootouts), Charlton’s Chuks Aneke
was the last player to fail from 12 yards against Barnsley back in April 2024.
Barnsley
have conceded from the spot in successive home league games for the first time
since September 2023 against Portsmouth and Blackpool.
Mansfield’s
comeback was the fifth Barnsley game to finish 3-2 this season – but the first
the Reds have been on the wrong end of.
The
Reds have now conceded exactly three times in successive games for the first
time since April 2024 against Portsmouth and Blackpool (both 3-2 defeats)
whereas one team has scored exactly three times in four successive Barnsley
games for the first time in 24 years, last occurring between 24th
October and 3rd November 2001 (1-3 v Sheffield Wednesday, 3-2 v West
Brom, 0-3 v Man City and 0-3 v Watford)
This
is the fifth time this season Barnsley have conceded 3+ goals in a game (all
comps) with four of those coming in the last six outings.
It
is the first time this season Barnsley have lost a game in which they have
netted at least twice and first time since the 18th April at Leyton
Orient (3-4)
It
is their first home league defeat when netting at least twice since September 2023
against Portsmouth (2-3)
Mansfield
achieved this comeback without making a single substitution throughout the
game, Barnsley’s first opponents to do this since Swansea in January 2021.
This
was Barnsley’s first Boxing Day defeat for 11 years, last suffering a reverse
on this festive date in 2014, 1-0 at Preston (W:5 D:3 – did not play in 2015 or
2021)
It
is their first home Boxing Day lost since a 1-0 defeat to Bolton in 2013.
It
is the second time in three years a Barnsley Boxing Day match has finished 3-2
with the Reds winning by this scoreline at Port Vale in 2023.
This
is the most goals Barnsley have conceded on Boxing Day since a 3-1 defeat to
Blackpool in 2011.
This
was the first time this season Barnsley have not picked up a yellow card in a
league game – all three previous occasions have occurred in a cup tie. It is
the first league game without a Barnsley yellow since the final home game of
2024-2025 (21 league games ago)
Ironically
last season the game prior to Christmas was their first card-less league game of
the campaign.
Barnsley
have lost three successive meetings with Mansfield for the first time ever.
They
have won only one of the last five, losing four.
No
side has kept a clean sheet in any of the last three clashes with Barnsley the
last team to do so in a 1-0 win in April 2003.
The
Reds have also now lost three successive Oakwell meetings for the first time
ever - prior to this run they had lost only two of the first 16 clashes here.
There
has now only been two clean sheets in the last nine Oakwell meetings.
Mansfield
have now scored exactly three goals in three of their five Oakwell victories.
Mansfield
won only one corner, the lowest by a Barnsley league opponent this season and
lowest since Peterborough almost exactly 12months ago to the day (29th
December 2024)
It
is the lowest from an opponent at Oakwell since Leyton Orient in February 2024.
Barnsley
Team:
1. Murphy Cooper
30. Jonathan Bland
4. Marc Roberts
5. Jack Shepherd
32. Josh Earl
7. Caylan Vickers
45. Vimal Yoganathan
22. Patrick Kelly
48. Luca Connell
19. Reyes Cleary
40. Davis
Keillor-Dunn
Substitutes:
23. Neil Farrugia
(for Vickers 67)
8. Adam Phillips (for
Yoganathan 67)
3. Jon Russell (for
Cleary 85)
10. David McGoldrick
(for Bland 85)
Unused Substitutes:
51. Kieren Flavell, 27. Tennai Watson, 6. Mael de Gevigney.
Mansfield
Team:
1. Liam Roberts
23. Adedeji Oshilaja
5. Ryan Sweeney
6. Baily Cargill
4. Elliott Hewitt
25. Louis Reed
8. Aaron Lewis
20. Fraser Blake-Tracy
22. Nathan Moriah-Welsh
3. Stephen McLaughlin
11. Will Evans
Substitutions:
None
Unused
Substitutes:
12. Owen Moxon, 21.
Kyle McAdam, 36. Jack Goodman, 34. Ollie Taylor, 38. Jayden Chambers, 14. Dom
Dwyer, 17. Max Dickov.
League One Results
Friday 26th December
AFC
Wimbledon (14th) 0-0 Stevenage (5th)
BARNSLEY
(9th) 2-3 Mansfield Town (17th)
Cleary 2
Keillor-Dunn 13
Reed
pen 25
McLaughlin
58
Lewis
83
Blackpool
(19th) 1-0 Doncaster Rovers (23rd)
Bloxham 17
Bolton
Wanderers (4th) 2-1 Rotherham United (21st)
Sheehan 45+1
Nombe
pen 90
Sheehan 90+3
Bradford
City (3rd) 2-1 Wigan Athletic (18th)
Humphrys 45
Wright
63
Wright 90
Burton
Albion (15th) 5-1 Northampton Town (16th)
Beesley pen 3
Armer 23
Dyche og 29
Eaves
39
Shade 44
Shade 84
Cardiff
City (1st) 1-0 Exeter City (22nd)
Robertson 53
Huddersfield
Town (7th) 5-0 Port Vale (24th)
Castledine 5
Ledson 15
Radulovic 32
May 50
Castledine 58
Luton
Town (8th) 4-0 Wycombe Wanderers (10th)
Kodua 4
Kodua 44
Clark 70
Morris 78
Peterborough
United (13th) 1-0 Leyton Orient (12th)
Frith 90+4
Plymouth
Argyle (20th) 1-4 Reading (11th)
Wing
pen 14
Wing
18
Doyle 20
Amaechi 68
Marriott
86
Stockport
County (6th) 1-2 Lincoln City (2nd)
Hackett
28
Fevrier 52
Street
pen 90+2
Barnsley
lie in 9th place in Sky Bet League One with 28 points from 19 games.
We are 7 points off the Play-Offs, 13 points off the Automatic Promotion Places,
16 points off First Place and 4 points above the Relegation Zone.
Up to 27/12/25
Next Up:
At Oakwell:
Sky Bet League One Matchday Twenty: Barnsley v Lincoln City, Monday 29th December 2025. Kick-Off: 7:45pm
On The Road:
Sky Bet League One
Matchday Twenty One: Wigan Athletic v Barnsley, Thursday 1st January
2026. Kick-Off: 3pm
