Betting Odds from Paddy Power

To Win the League	100/1
To Get Promoted	28/1

Players In

Luke Steele (West Brom)
Iain Hume (Leicester)
Mounir El Haimour (NE Xamax)
Hugo Roberto Colace (Newell's Old Boys)
Darren Moore (Derby)

It was quite a season last time out for Simon Davey in his first full season in charge.

It got off to a pretty poor start when they were hammered by Iain Dowie's Coventry at home on the opening day but things picked up and it was as season few Barnsley fans will forget.

They got their first league win against Plymouth and soon moved up the table. Subsequent wins over Scunthorpe, Southampton and Bristol City saw them move into the playoff positions in fourth place and the talk was of a long awaited return to the Premiership.

They remained in and around the playoffs for most of October and November recording some excellent wins including a 3-2 thriller against Watford.

Barnsley have a small squad though and began to struggler around Christmas going eight games without a league win which saw them drop to mid table and leave them looking nervously over their shoulders before a 1-0 win over Colchester and 2-1 win over West Brom gave them breathing space.

It was in the FA Cup where they made the biggest splash knocking out Blackpool and then Southend to line up a fifth round tie at Liverpool.

They warmed up for the game by getting hammered at Plymouth as yet again their away form let them down. At home Barnsley looked very strong but on their travels it was a different story.

At Anfield though they stunned everyone with on loan keeper Luke Steele having the game of his life. An injury time goal from Brian Howard won them the game and sent them into a quarter final clash with Chelsea.

As expected the league form tailed off as excitement built over the Cup and they did the impossible again beating the cup holders Chelsea 1-0 at oakwell.

The celebrations were wild across the country and that saw them face a date at Wembley in the semi final with Cardiff City.

They went into the semi final on a run of three defeats on a row which saw them drop to 20th just a point clear of the drop. Relegation was as close as an FA Cup final appearance.

The semi final was a good game and Barnsley were very unlucky to lose out 1-0 after Odejayi missed a sitter in the second half.

It looked like the season would end on big low but Simon Davey got his team together and they thrashed Watford 3-0 days later before a win at Preston saw them move away from danger.

A 3-0 win over Charlton was enough to ensure another season of Championship football.

The final position of 18th would probably have been better without the cup run but it is unlikely any Barnsley fan would swap last season's cup run for a few league wins.

A new season and same old predictions for Barnsley. I think I tip them to struggle every year and they usually prove me wrong but this time I think they could be in trouble.

Simon Davey had his side playing some really nice football last season in fact I thought they looked a decent unit despite losing at Loftus Road last season. They looked a good side at home but far too often they would show a soft centre on the road and that could be their undoing this season. They have showed again during pre season that they struggle to get results away from home.

Simon Davey has been busy in the transfer market this summer but I think he's had mixed results. Iain Hume is a good player who can score and create goals and will compliment Odejayi well up front. Odejayi is certainly a striker with bags of potential but it remains uncertain if he will go on and destroy teams with his pace and power or be a gentle giant who struggles to convert his chances.

Darren Moore will add experience to the defence but I think this may be a season too far for him after the battering he took at Derby last year and he may well find life tough at Oakwell.

Much will depend on the midfield creativity of Campbell-Ryce and Brian Howard who on their day are as good as anything in the division. If they stay and reproduce the form of last season then Barnsley could be in for a similar season to last time.

I fear though that this will be a struggle for them and I think they will face a hell of a fight to stay in the division for a third season unless they improve their away form.

PREDICTION: 23rd in the Championship

I asked Barnsley fans on an unofficial message board for their thoughts on the new season and here is what they had to say.

How do you think Barnsley will fare this season?

We should be good enough to stay up again but not much more than that

Who are your players to watch out for?

Brian Howard is still the star man our new signing De Silva looks exciting.

Is your Manager the right man for the job?

I think so but this is a big season for him

Which three teams will be promoted this season?

Birmingham and Wolves then take your pick for the playoffs.

Which teams will be relegated?

Blackpool, Doncaster and Sheffield Wednesday

How do you think QPR will fare this season?

You should do well with the money you have to spend but i have my doubt about Dowie so think you'll finish just below the playoffs.

Both sides have one of their former players on each others books. Daniel Nardiello joined QPR from Barnsley a year ago and hasn't had the best of timers in West London.

He struggled to get a first team place early in the season with John Gregory preferring Blackstock and Sahar up front and then injury saw him reduced to a bit part player when De Canio arrived.

He returned to Barnsley on a loan deal in January where he did ok for his former club but the expected move back up North has yet to happen and he remains a QPR player.

Rohan Ricketts is now at Barnsley after he had a short loan spell from Wolves at the end of the 2006/07 season. Ricketts made a few substitute appearances before going back to Wolves and played his part in a massive win against Preston which went a long way to keeping us in the division.

In the past Kevin Gallen has played for both clubs. Gallen had a brief spell at Barnsley in 2001/02 season but failed to settle and was allowed to join QPR after just a few months at Oakwell for his second spell with us until 2007 as he scored 54 of his 97 goals for QPR.

Nigel Spackman also played for QPR in the 1980's before moving to Glasgow Rangers in a move that saw Ray Wilkins come to Loftus Road. Spackman went onto manage Barnsley in 2001 but didn't last too long in the job.

Rangers have faced Barnsley several times in recent years.

Since this web site started the two sides have met ten times with neither side winning the away fixture during this run of games.

Back in 1998/99 Richard Langley's home debut came against Barnsley and Langley scored in a 2-1 win which gave Gerry Francis his first three points since returning as manager. The return game was a comfortable 1-0 win for Barnsley.

The 1999/00 season saw both games drawn. Rob Steiner scored in a 2-2 draw at Loftus Road and a brilliant Matthew Rose strike almost gave us all three points at Oakwell but Craig Hignett got his yearly goal against QPR to earn his side a point.

Rangers not so glorious relegation season saw Barnsley thrash QPR 4-2 early on in the season. Chris Kiwomya's double looked like it might bring us back into the game but Bruce Dyer killed the game off late on.

Gerry Francis resigned as manager in the week leading up to the return game but was still on the bench when the two sides met as he agreed to stay in charge until a new man was found. Peter Crouch and Chris Kiwomya got the goals in a 2-0 win.

Barnsley joined QPR in Division two a year later and a week into that season Barnsley beat Rangers 1-0 on a sunny day at Oakwell. Rangers got revenge with a 1-0 win later in the season as Richard Pacquette got the goal.

Rangers promotion season saw two unforgettable games between the two sides. Barnsley came for a point at Loftus Road and rarely got out of their own half before Rangers finally broke them down. Kevin Gallen got the goal and Rangers then ran riot as Rowlands, Ainsworth and Thorpe added goals to complete a 4-0 win.

The return game was a crucial one. Rangers needed a win to stay clear of Bristol City in the race for promotion. A tight first half saw the teams go in at 1-1. Rangers dominated the second half and Paul Furlong grabbed a deserved goal to make it 2-1.

The three points looked in the bag before a bizarre substitution saw Rangers look to sit on the lead and inevitably threw it away.

Two goals in the last five minutes gave Barnsley a 3-2 lead and our promotion dream looked shattered. Enter Paul Furlong though and in the 93rd minute he equalised to earn Rangers a vital point and send the 2,000 QPR fans into scenes of jubilant celebrations.

in 2006/07 season both sides were in a relegation battle for most of the season and faced two six pointers during the winter. The first one was at Loftus Road just before Christmas. That day I was out in Florida sitting around the swimming Pool whilst the team were in action and thankfully it was a good day as Martin Rowlands goal separated the two sides and won the three points for Rangers.

The return game at Oakwell a month later was a different story though. Rangers missed several good chances and were denied a blatant penalty but the home side took their chances and score in the last minuet of each half to collect a valuable win and drop Rangers into the bottom three.

Last season we met Barnsley for the first time in January and a new look QPR side thrashed the Tykes 2-0 with goals from Agyemang and this websites goal of the season from Rowan Vine. The game could have been won by a much higher scoreline with many chances missed although Barnsleys attempts to play football showed they had something about them.

The return game was called off due to Barnsley playing and beating Liverpool in the FA Cup and both sides went away from oakwell thinking they could have won what was a 0-0 draw.

Rangers have now failed to win at Barnsley since 1996 and Barnsley have not won at QPR since 1950. So two home bankers in 2008/09?

Click on the match for a report of the game from this web site.

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