Barnsley FC's Martin Devaney has tough decisions to make ahead of Bolton Wanderers League One play-off decider

For the first 23 minutes of Friday's game against Bolton Wanderers and slightly longer at the end, Barnsley outplayed visitors who finished 11 points above them in the table.

The switch-off was caused by a sloppy goal as Barnsley were distracted by trying to bring Devante Cole back onto the field and allowed Paris Maghoma to put in a cross which Dion Charles found space to finish from.

When Charles scored a second-half penalty, brought about by a mix-up between Jordan Williams and goalkeeper Liam Roberts, a comfortable away win loomed.

Swapping Cosgrove for Cole – whose substitution was cheered by his own fans, not for the first time – turned it.

If Cosgrove's goal – well taken from an excellent pass by fellow substitute Conor Grant – was a good advertisement for changing Tuesday's XI, the effectiveness of Barnsley's more direct football was perhaps a pointer as to how they should play, too.

It was just a pity as ex-Hull City winger Randell Williams scoring direct from a stoppage-time corner with the hosts feeling Roberts was being illegally pinned back made the task that much harder.

Devaney, who will again take the team as the search for Neill Collins' full-time replacement as coach continues, said of Cosgrove. "He can change the dynamics of the team. He showed what he can do.

"When Sam comes on his strength is peeling off the centre-backs, winning headers, trying to get hold of it and bringing people into play so when you make those subs, that’s what you want to see them do.

"I was really pleased he got his goal and he's certainly going to be in my mind."

There was no escaping Barnsley will also need to be better defensively to overturn a 3-1 deficit in Lancashire, though.

"It was poor defending from everyone involved," admitted centre-back Josh Earl. "We just can't keep giving away goals like that.

"Whether it's a foul on Robbo (for the third) I don’t know but it's just another sloppy goal.

"I don’t know if it's us switching off but it's a goal we just need to start avoiding. All three goals were quite poor.

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"The first was a good move from the striker and a good bit of play but we're down to 10 men and we've gone to press them and we should have stuck together as a team.

"That's just little mistakes that we make in a split second."

But last year's play-offs, which saw Sheffield Wednesday overcome a 4-0 first-leg deficit in their semi-final, has given everyone hope.

"We can be encouraged by the whole performance apart from the three goals," said Earl. "We defended really well most of the game and played some good football towards the end. We've just got to go there with the attitude that we can still put in a good performance.

"At 2-1, we look like the next team to score so that’s how we've got to approach it again – with the mindset that we can get a goal, we can keep pushing and put pressure on them.

"It could be a freak goal that kick-starts it, it could be an unbelievable tackle, it could be anything and we'll be going there with every intention to go and try and win the game.

"They beat us by two goals. Why can't we beat them by two goals?

"The pressure's off us now really. As soon as you get one back you never know what can happen."