Steve Davis says Barnsley task will be tough

Steve Davis says as disappointed as any to see Danny Wilson’s second spell at Barnsley not work out as well as the first. As one of his centre-halves, Davis played under Wilson as the Tykes secured Premier League status in 1997 and the Crewe boss has nothing but the utmost respect for his former boss.

With Barnsley struggling against relegation, Wilson was recently dismissed from his position at Oakwell and caretaker coaches Mark Burton and Paul Heckington will be in charge for the game tomorrow. A win for the Tykes would see them leapfrog Crewe in the table on goal difference.

Davis is looking forward to returning to Oakwell tomorrow but is determined to get his side back to winning ways following Tuesday night’s last minute defeat at Doncaster.

“It has been difficult for Barnsley this season because after coming down from the Championship they would have been expected to challenge for promotion again. It is not easy to do that because this league is very competitive, ‘says Steve.

“I was sad to see Danny go because he is someone I have a lot of respect for. He was my manager at Barnsley and I still have a good relationship with him.

“I also know Mark and the coaches there. Mark has been at the club for a long time and he will be determined to get them away from the relegation zone until they find a successor to Danny.

“They will be hurting after the Crawley defeat last weekend but that goes to show how difficult it is in this league. It is difficult to predict and you have to be on it.

“We hope to pose them some problems and get back to winning ways. If we can show that consistency, we have been showing then we have every chance of getting back on track.

 He added: “I’m sure Mark will have some different ideas and he has changed one or two players. They have also taken a young lad from Blackburn on loan and I’m sure they will continue to change things as they look for a winning formula.”