Zeki Fryers and Ryan Hedges to miss Barnsley’s opener against Oxford

Posted Friday, August 03, 2018 by PA

Zeki Fryers and Ryan Hedges are unavailable for Barnsley’s Sky Bet League One opener against Oxford on Saturday, the club’s first competitive match under boss Daniel Stendel.

Defender Fryers and midfielder Hedges are sidelined after picking up injuries in friendlies against Salford and Hull respectively, while Jacob Brown is also out.

Kenny Dougall could make his competitive debut in the match at Oakwell after joining from Sparta Rotterdam last month.

The 25-year-old Australian midfielder scored for his new club in the 1-1 draw with Hull on Saturday.

Oxford fine-tuned their preparations for the clash by training at the Football Association’s St George’s Park in Burton.

And it gave new arrival Sam Smith, signed on a season-long loan from Reading, the chance to meet up with his new team-mates ahead of the opener.

Oxford manager Karl Robinson will need to check on the fitness, meanwhile, of another loan signing – midfielder Marcus Browne – who has been troubled by a knee problem.

But Oxford are otherwise in good shape, with striker Jon Obika looking to continue a rich vein of form that saw him score eight goals during pre-season, which was one short of the club record set by Billy Whiteside 31 years ago.