BARNSLEY 1, STOCKPORT COUNTY 3
The final day of the regular League One season saw Stockport County make certain of involvement in the play-offs for the second successive season with a victory at mid-table Barnsley.
Adama Sidibeh, captain Ollie Norwood and substitute Beno Andrésson were on target during an afternoon that could have left the Hatters finishing anywhere between third and seventh having, at kick off, needed a point to guarantee top-six qualification.
In the event, they ended up in third position for the second year running and will now take on sixth-placed Stevenage over two semi-final legs.
Sidibeh’s header midway through the first half put the Hatters ahead before they were pegged back by a leveller early in the second. Norwood restored the lead with a penalty just under 20 minutes later and Andrésson scored deep in stoppage time to put the seal on County’s first triumph at Oakwell for 25 years.
The Hatters took to the field on a sunny South Yorkshire afternoon showing three changes from their starting line-up at Edgeley Park against Port Vale four days previously.
Josh Dacres-Cogley returned to the team for the first time in nearly four weeks following his recovery from injury while Louie Barry and Tayo Edun were also handed starts, replacing Malik Mothersille and Che Gardner (both of whom were named among the substitutes), as well as Jack Diamond.
The hosting Tykes, turning out for manager Conor Hourihane’s final match in charge, included among their starters Corey O’Keeffe, who had spent the first half of the current campaign on loan at EP, and, in Tom Bradshaw (Wales) and Patrick Kelly (Northern Ireland), a pair of players to have been capped at full international level.
The seventh minute of the contest saw County earn the afternoon’s first corner with Norwood playing his delivery from the right short to midfield partner Odin Bailey who proceeded to strike the inaugural shot high and wide of the far post.
Five minutes later – and sandwiched in-between two further corners for the Hatters – a Josh Stokes half-volley from the edge of the box was comfortably caught by home goalkeeper Kieren Flavell. And, following a fourth corner, Ben Osborn saw his strike deflected behind for a fifth by Bradshaw.
As the first half hit its mid-point, the County corner-count was up to nine and, just after the last of those had been taken, the Hatters went ahead as the ball was recycled out to Norwood whose cross from the left was spilled by Flavell, allowing Sidibeh to head home from close range for his ninth goal in all competitions.
Both keepers were then forced into saves in quick succession, with Corey Addai, who had been on Barnsley’s books during the 2020/21 campaign, and Flavell parrying well-struck shots from Reyes Cleary and Norwood, respectively.
Three minutes after the half-hour, Flavell, at full stretch, kept out another County attempt, tipping Bailey’s low drive around the left upright. And, five minutes later, the hosts’ skipper Luca Connell fired over from distance.
The Tykes had the ball in County’s net five minutes before the interval, but Bradshaw was flagged offside as he converted Cleary’s low cross from the left. And a further, similar Cleary delivery was prodded wide of the near post by Adam Phillips prior to added time.
Upon the resumption, Sidibeh required a brief spell of treatment after the ball hit him full in the face just after the hosts had kicked off. And, when the action got properly under way, Addai had to be at his best to parry and then turn around the right post a goal-bound header from Phillips.
Seven minutes into the new half, Phillips tried again by connecting with, and heading on, a free kick from Connell. Once more he found himself thwarted by an Addai save, but he was to get an immediate third opportunity to head and equalised after the ball fell to O’Keeffe whose cut-back for Phillips across the six-yard box from the right of goal was nodded in from close range.
With 20 minutes left, referee Seb Stocksbridge pointed to the spot after Stokes was fouled in the area by Eoghan O’Connell. And Norwood stepped up, in front of the stand housing more than 2,600 travelling County supporters, to fire his penalty into the bottom-left corner and put the Hatters back in front.
Stokes drilled wide of the left post before substitutes Roman Dixon and Andrésson saw shots respectively hit the right side-netting and parried behind by Flavell as the Hatters strove to add to their tally. And, in the final minute of normal time, Addai held on to the dangerous Cleary’s volleyed effort from the edge of the box.
A whopping 11 minutes were added on, during which County appeals for a second penalty were waved away after Andrésson had gone to ground in the home box, Cleary fired over at the other end, and, in the eighth minute of the 11, Andrésson put the win beyond doubt as he was played through on goal by Bailey and ran the length of the Barnsley half before converting past Flavell.
Goals: Phillips (52) for Barnsley. Sidibeh (23), Norwood (71pen), Andresson (90+8) for Stockport.
Stockport (4-3-3): Addai; Dacres-Cogley (Dixon 80), Wootton, Pye, Edun; Bailey (C Gardner, 90+10), Norwood, Osborn; Stokes (Fiorini 80), Sidibeh (Olaofe 72), Barry (Andrésson 72). Subs (unused): Hinchliffe, Mothersille.
Attendance:12,940 (2,609 visitors).
Report: Gareth Evans.