Stevenagevs.Barnsley

The hosts have stumbled out the starting gate this season, currently in 17th place with four points in as many games, while the visitors are third with 10 points in five matches.

Match preview

Stevenage enjoyed a very successful return to League One after a decade away last season, ending the campaign inside the top 10 with a record of 19 wins, 14 draws and 13 losses in their 46 matches.

However, like Leyton Orient, who were the other automatic promotion recipients in 2022-23, their second term in the third tier has begun poorly, with both sides involved in the early-season scrap at the bottom of the table.

Granted, Boro's four points to date look much better than the Os duck, but they are still only a single point above Shrewsbury, who are the first side below the dotted line heading into this weekend's fixtures.

Under the guidance of Alex Revell, the hosts made a positive start to the season, beating the Shrews 1-0 at home, but that was followed by defeats to Huddersfield Town and Lincoln City either side of a goalless draw away to Burton Albion.

When these sides met in league competition last, Boro came out on top with a 2-1 victory at this venue, but lost by the same scoreline in the reverse fixture on the road back in December last year.

Meanwhile, after losing out on promotion in the playoffs last season, Barnsley look determined to keep up with the pace-setters this term, currently just three points off league leaders Wrexham.

The Tykes began the league campaign poorly, losing 2-1 at home to Mansfield Town, but since then, there has been a notable improvement in their performances, with wins over Lincoln City, Crawley Town and Bristol Rovers, scoring two or more goals in each of those matches.

Additionally, Darrell Clarke's side pulled off an against-the-odds victory over Championship side Sheffield United to progress to the next round of the EFL Cup last month, meaning they are now on a three-match winning streak across all competitions and unbeaten in their last four.

However, the Tykes have also shown their susceptibility of the odd lapse, as we saw when they were sent packing from the EFL trophy 3-2 by Manchester United's Under-21s in mid August.

Still, Barnsley have won all three of their away games this season, and have been led by the efforts of Adam Phillips, who is the joint-top-scorer in the division with four goals alongside Birmingham City's Alfie May.

Stevenage League One form:

Stevenage form (all competitions):

W

L

L

W

D

L

Barnsley League One form:

Barnsley form (all competitions):

W

L

D

W

W

W

Team News

Dan Sweeney has been added to Stevenage's long-term injury list after limping off during the recent game against Lincoln City, with Revell confirming that the 30-year-old will be out of action for "quite a while".

The Boro boss also admitted that Kane Smith, who went off with a slight niggle in the same match is a doubt and he will be assessed prior to kick-off to determine if he will be involved.

Luther Wildin has been absent for the last couple of games, while Jamie Reid has yet to feature this season and also missed the pre-season friendlies.

Fabio Jalo was not required to undergo surgery for the shoulder injury he picked up against Derby in pre-season, but he is still a few weeks away from making a return to full fitness.

Given his impressive start to the season with three goals in his last two outings, Phillips is almost certain to continue as the furthest-forward midfielder in support of Sam Cosgrove at the top end of the pitch.

Stevenage possible starting lineup:

Mahoney, Smith, Freestone, Piergianni, Butler; Phillips, Thompson; Roberts, Kemp, List; Simpson

Barnsley possible starting lineup:

Slonina; De Gevigne, Pines, Roberts, Earl; Craig; Cotter, Keillor-Dunn, Connell, Phillips; Cosgrove

We say: Stevenage 1-2 Barnsley

After an opening-week defeat to Mansfield Town, Barnsley found excellent form leading up to the international break, unbeaten in four games, and we fancy them to return to league action with a victory over Stevenage, who are winless in their last three.

Previews by email