Our game at Barnsley kicks off at 1pm on New Year’s Eve.

To get there by car you need to leave the M1 at Junction 37 and take the A628 towards Barnsley. Just keep following the A628 and following the signs the ground will eventually come into view. There is a large car park for away fans right behind the away end of the ground.

The railway station is about 10 minutes’ walk from the ground and you have to go in the opposite direction to the town centre and keep going uphill. I could give more precise directions, but every time I’ve been to Barnsley by train we’ve been rounded up by the police for an escort to Oakwell. Last year they let both sets of fans out at the same time after the game, but as there was a bit of a disturbance close to the town centre the police might not take such a relaxed attitude this time.

I don’t know how many of the local pubs will be admitting Leeds fans on the day, or if any of the local hostelries will be open at all. You probably won’t get into anywhere in the town centre, but one place that is worth a try is the bar at the Metro Dome leisure centre. Last year there was no alcohol on sale anywhere inside the ground, and we could well find that this is the case this year as well.

In the old second division days of 1980s Barnsley was always a chaotic away trip with thousands of Leeds crammed into the open away terrace, and we were so tightly packed that even when it rained only our heads would get wet. In those days the ground was gloriously old-fashioned and they only had seats in the top half of the main stand, with the rest of Oakwell being terracing. But to meet the demands of the Taylor report they had to build three new stands in the 1990s, although the West Stand, part of which dates back to 1904.

The normal away section is in the modern North Stand, where the facilities are good with unrestricted views, as you would expect. The normal allocation for away supporters is 2,000 tickets but bigger clubs can have the whole of this stand and bring 6,000 supporters, out of a total capacity of 23,000. For our visit last season they also gave us half the old West Stand as well, which had outside ‘piss against the wall’ toilets. This took me right back to the 1980s, when we used to enjoy toilet facilities like that every week!

It’s no surprise that this fixture has been designated as category A, so adult tickets cost £30, with concessions at £18 and £7. Barnsley are only selling home tickets to fans who are already on their database.

The club are planning to replace the old West Stand with another modern stand in the same style as the other three stands, but they have no idea when they will be able to do this.

Some of this rubbish came from www.footballgroundguide.com

Photo: Action Images

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