LUCA CONNELL insists that turning the page following a long and increasingly arduous league season at Barnsley and writing a new play-off chapter is a ‘positive’ to be embraced by the players.
After losing their final six games of the regular season, the Reds are not in the best of form going into the postseason lottery.
They have only triumphed twice overall in the past 12 games.
Ranked among the top two contenders in March, Barnsley staggered into the playoffs and their spot was nervously guaranteed with a draw against Northampton.
However, because of the psychology of this time of year, one season ends and a “new” one starts, and historically, form has not always mattered much.
The South Yorkshire team’s semi-final first leg against Bolton at Oakwell on Friday night may have a new face in the dugout.Nine days ago, the Reds fired Neill Collins, and Dominik Thalhammer, an Austrian head coach, was chosen to take over as permanent manager.The 53-year-old, a former coach at Bruges and Ostende, has apparently been waiting for his work permit, and the club is currently evaluating alternative candidates.
Richie Wellens, the current manager of Leyton Orient and a former manager of Doncaster Rovers, is reportedly being considered as a prospective option, while Mike Williamson, the head coach of MK Dons, has also been connected.
However, unless things change soon, interim head coach Martin Devaney, who was in control for Saturday’s play-off clinching tie with Cobblers, will be in command on Friday.
From the viewpoint of a player, Connell claims that the Reds, who defeated Bolton in the 2022–2023 league season, can only benefit from moving on from a difficult end to the league season and starting anew in the play-offs.
Connell, a former Wanderers player, is one of many Reds players hoping to atone for the devastating play-off final defeat to Yorkshire rivals Sheffield Wednesday at Wembley last season. He stated: “That (regular season ending) will be a positive for us.”
“Everything from the previous season or few weeks is gone. You just have to move on to the play-offs and forget about the good or bad stuff.
“Every boy talks about it (Wembley last year), and the boys who weren’t there ask, ‘Oh, how was it like that?'”
We all want to return to Wembley and make amends since we have unresolved business there. We have discussed it all together.
“We have performed in front of sizable crowds during the semifinals and final before, so we know what the occasion is like.”
Personally, I believe that Connell will be among the few players who are mentally rested heading into Barnsley’s pivotal final stretch of the season.
The Liverpudlian was sidelined at the beginning of the season by an unidentified sickness that was later determined to be post-viral tiredness.
Connell watched games from his couch at home throughout the late summer and early autumn, but he had no intention of picking up the game again.
Thankfully, Connell’s health began to improve, and he returned following a time of recuperation.He has made appearances 27 times in 2023–24, which is quite an achievement considering the situation, as he tries to cap off a challenging year as successfully as possible.
“If people had told me at the beginning of the season that you will play so many games and stuff like that, I would have taken it because I didn’t know when my next game was when I wasn’t feeling well,” he continued.
“Really, I’m just excited about the playoffs. We want the season to continue for a few more weeks, ideally all the way to the championship.
