Barnsley continued their pre-season preparations by playing out a 2-2 draw with local rivals Doncaster Rovers at the Keepmoat Stadium this afternoon, but the main talking points were injuries to new signings Toni Silva and Mido.
An own goal from Rovers summer recruit Rob Jones and a third goal in four friendly appearances for Craig Davies had seen The Reds turn a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 lead. But a mistake by Reds stopper Ben Alnwick, just six minutes after Davies’ strike saw Rovers- who were relegated from the Championship last season and have not won in front of their own supporters since a 2-0 victory over Barnsley at the start of January- earn a draw.
But it was injuries to two of manager Keith Hill’s new recruits that will cause the most angst to supporters. Marquee signing, the Egyptian striker Mido was forced off with what looked like a hamstring injury, before his replacement, the Portugese signing from Liverpool, Toni Silva was also forced off, all in the first 17 minutes.
To compound matters, midfielder David Perkins also exited in the 85th minute with blood gushing from a head wound.
It has been preliminarily reported that Mido- who has struggled with his fitness during pre-season and was always unlikely to start the Championship opener with his former club Middlesbrough in exactly two weeks, could now be set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
Barnsley, who have so far won one, drawn three and lost one of their five pre-season fixtures have one more to come- at Crewe on Tuesday, before the competitive action kicks off in seven days time with the Capital One Cup First Round tie at Rochdale.
For a full match report of today’s game click here
Source: FOOTYMAD
