It was final day drama for Barnsley with their relegation from the Sky Bet Championship confirmed on the back of a 4-1 thumping handed out by Derby County.
Goals from Cameron Jerome (14′), Matej Vydra (55′), David Nugent (68′) and Tom Lawrence (71′) condemned the Tykes to relegation back to League One alongside Burton Albion and Sunderland.
It was also a defeat which saw head coach Jose Morais and his coaching team lose their jobs in South Yorkshire. Portuguese boss Morais, who signed on an 18-month deal in February, had a brief of keeping the Tykes in the second-tier – something he failed to do.
Since taking over from Paul Heckingbottom, Morais has won only three of his 15 games whilst at the helm of the Tykes, a record neither good enough to save them from relegation or him his job.
Barnsley eventually ended up two points shy of safety on 41 points, but would have been safe had Bolton not staged a Lazurus-like comeback with two goals at the death to overturn a 2-1 deficit against Nottingham Forest.
Five favourites for the vacant Barnsley top job
Mick McCarthy 7/2 – until someone takes a punt on Big Mick and installs him in their hotseat, the former Ipswich Town boss will forever be linked with every vacancy going. He’s been out of work since leaving the Tractor Boys, famously announcing ‘I’m outta here’ during an after-match interview before leaving the club ahead of time.
Stuart McCall 4/1 – former Bradford City boss McCall is available after he was sacked by the Bantams in early February after six straight defeats. Whilst form was an issue, some fans were left scratching their heads as City were still in the top six play-off picture, albeit precariously.
Danny Cowley 8/1 – Cowley is currently manager of League Two play-off side Lincoln City and only signed an extended contract until 2022 at the end of April just gone. He has guided the Imps to the League Two play-offs in their first season back in league football and is an up-and-coming manager with a growing reputation.
Uwe Rosler 8/1 – Rosler is available after the German was sacked as manager of Fleetwood Town in mid-February of this year. The former Leeds United boss was sacked by the Cod Army after seven successive defeats across all competitions and would be an appointment who knows League One football very well.
Jack Ross 9/1 – Ross is the current boss at Scottish Championship side St Mirren where he has been in charge since early October 2016. He guided St Mirren to the Scottish Championship title this season past, with this title meaning promotion to the SPL. This pedigree would obviously stand him in good stead for League One in England.
Sky Bet odds correct as of 06.05.18 at 20:00
