Probably about half an hour.
Stewards were helpful, kind and unobtrusive. Over 65's/Under 22's £24 (A £22) (B £20) (C £18) (D £16) I had visions of blokes coming up to me asking if I’d got change for the lockers! With the season moving distinctly towards its business end, such form could prove crucial for both clubs as Preston were starting the day in 2nd place in the League and whilst we would obviously have been hoping to consolidate our grip on that all important prized automatic promotion spot, there would be no doubt that fans of the Tykes would be equally fervently keen that the Yorkshire club cemented their place in the play-offs, as they started the day in 6th position in the table. Eventually, we made it inside and headed up to our seats. 3400 filled the North Stand cheering on the Stars in Stripes and when Albion went in front a tidy little chip over the keeper the roar went up.
The opposite end, the North Stand, is a large single tier, covered stand, housing around 6,000 fans. It is for over 18's only and has a doorman, but made a welcome change.' Our stand was only given to us, and we were pushed to the left-hand side where about 800 of us were. If this was to happen, it would increase capacity by just under 4,500. Tickets can also be bought at the turnstiles on the day of the match. It was the first away day of 2018, and with 4,700 tickets sold for Wolves fans, it promised to be a great atmosphere as Nuno’s men went in search of three more points in their quest for promotion. The bus I caught was the X19, which runs every hour. Three newer stands and an old stand along one length of the pitch. A great away day and definitely a place I would come back to. Beck Gough informs me; 'I would recommend the Corner Pocket on Elm Row, around a 10-15 minute walk from Oakwell. So if you do it might be a good idea to cover up any colours.
Not registered yet? A draw was still a good point for us though, and the atmosphere was fantastic. It got extensively redeveloped in the 1990s, with only the original main stand from the early 20th century left standing. Unfortunately, the game was a dull one and ended 0-0. This pub which is listed in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide is an outlet for the Old Mill Brewery. This will be limited though and if arriving later, plan on using the facilities mentioned in this Guide. Make your voice heard, click here to write your own review. The facilities on the North Stand are much improved from the old open terrace where I recall catching my death of cold one evening as a howling gale with near horizontal rain came racing down off the Pennines. Langdales chippy just around the corner from the ground. The journey wasn't too stressful we only got stuck in traffic when we arrived in Barnsley other than that the journey was fine.
The atmosphere in the away end was very good, didn't hear much from the Barnsley fans all game. Backed by a sell-out away end of nearly 5,000 fans and Barnsley dubbing the fixture the 'rematch of the season' it promised to be a good game. It also has old-style corner floodlights too. Both teams attacked each other from the start with goals, chances and near misses aplenty along with contentious refereeing decisions, the home side eventually deservedly won 3-2. It took us around four hours including a short stop at the Services. Having arrived at half time, we were disappointed to find there was no food, or soft drinks available, however the stewards were friendly and the toilets were nice and wide to ensure no crushing. Then Oakwell looks a lot better with a mix of new stands and the quaint old Main Stand. Since my last visit - when I almost got exposure on the terraces - Barnsley has developed the ground well into a decent Championship venue. It was very easy to retrace my steps and I was back on the train home by 2.30pm. We had a few minutes spare before our train so we grabbed a bite to eat from Greggs and some beer from Iceland and made our way back to the station.
Had a pint in the concourse, and took our seats well before kick off. Chances in the first half were few, most of them fell Preston’s way and top scorer Joey Garner did tuck one away to cue an eruption in the away end and a flurry of hats being flung up gaily in the air (they only cost £3.99 ish from fancy dress shops). Kevin Downsworth a visiting Hull City fan adds; ‘The Barnsley East Dene Club was very welcoming to us as away fans for a pre-game pint. It took an hour after the game had ended to get back to the M1, due to the high volume of traffic that were also heading back towards Sheffield! As a preventative measure the Doncaster fans were escorted by the Police back to the train station.
We parked at the East Dene Working Mens Club for £2, although the car park was virtually full when we arrived. Happy days! Recommended but it will get busy. Cost three pounds, which I thought was very reasonable. We took just shy of 5,000 fans, which our keeper John Ruddy said after the game was the most he’d ever seen in the Barnsley away end. Registered in England and Wales.
Added to that it took place in the evening with a lot of supporters well oiled by that time!