Reds humbled on opening day

A new era at Barnsley Football Club saw over 900 optimistic Reds' fans travel down to Devon to see their side in action on matchday one against Plymouth Argyle. I was unsure what to think, but I was confident that Barnsley would at least be stable and competitive.

Well I couldn't have been more wrong! Plymouth looked far more organised, stronger on the ball, faster, eager, confident and better at everything than the Reds.

At first the Reds seemed to opt for a high defensive line, but that was quickly pounced upon, and the lack of speed from Robbie Cundy and Liam Kitching was exposed. Josh Benson, fresh from a good pre-season, was at fault on this occasion and a lack of defensive awareness from Robbie Cundy saw danger-man Finn Azaz through on goal, but an excellent save down to his left from Brad Collins, saved Barnsley. Cundy didn't have a great game, once again his slow pace allowed a Plymouth attacker to breeze past him to reach the ball first, but the 25 year old recovered well, with a good block to stop a certain Plymouth goal.

The Reds finally showed a promising sign, all of Barnsley's attacks came down the wings, with Cadden in particular looking lively. However, a real lack of quality from crosses thwarted any chance of sustained pressure on the Plymouth net. The Tykes did manage to finally show some composure and quality, with Cadden whipping in a fine ball to Jack Aithchison who was inches away from making it 1-0, with the bar coming to Plymouth's aid (Josh Benson had his shot blocked on the line with the rebound)!

Don't get too comfortable however, that was to be Barnsley's only real show of threat for the next hour. After pressure built for almost the entire half, Argyle broke the deadlock just before half-time. Poor defending from Benson and Williams down the right-hand side, and Azaz made no mistake on this occasion, firing in a low cross into the roof of the net, with Collins having no chance.

The feeling from last season definitely returned to the stands, with boo's ringing out from a number of supporters as the half time whistle blew. An inspiring team-talk needed from Michael Duff.

The second half began, and Cundy (who looked dreadful) was changed, in favour of Conor McCarthy. Barnsley changed it up for the second half, with more direct balls into the channel, but Plymouth still didn't break at all under pressure. You could count on one hand, the amount of chances that the Tykes had, but all of our chances were excellent opportunities to score. A deflection from a Plymouth man, after a poor touch from Devante Cole saw Jack Aitchison through on goal, his effort was saved by Mike Cooper, but massive calls for a Penalty from Barnsley, and the replays shows that they were very unfortunate to not be awarded a spot kick.

But that was to be the final chance for quite a while. With Plymouth woken up by that lapse in concentration, they once again hammered the Reds in the channels and on the flanks. Half chance, after half chance fell to the home side, and I cannot believe that Plymouth only scored one. It seemed to be down the right where Barnsley were opened up the most, showing a clear need for competition at right wing-back.

Five minutes added on was the call from the fourth official, and Barnsley ramped up their pressure, an excellent corner from Cadden saw Macaulay Gillesphey almost turn the ball into his own net, but a good clearance off the line from Gillesphey saved the day for Plymouth, and the referee called full time.

A disappointing afternoon on the South Coast for Barnsley. They need to dust themselves off, and go again next week against Cheltenham Town. We have to remember, Plymouth are an excellent side who are well oiled and know their roles. We will not be facing Plymouth every week, however I do believe this proves we are nowhere near promotion level, and unless something changes quickly, we can get used to League One football for a few more seasons to come.