Two goals from corners in the first half gave Barnsley a priceless 2-0 win against Bristol City in their bid for Championship survival. 

Goals from Carlton Morris and Michal Helik were the difference makers for the hosts, who moved within two points of Reading in 21st, closing the gap on their relegation rivals.

For The Robins it was another disappointing day on the road, having only won once on their travels in the last five months and their fortunes were no different at Oakwell.

Story of the match

Andreas Weimann, who slotted in at right wing back for The Robins, was on hand to clear up a poor pass from Han-Noah Massengo to prevent the hosts from being gifted a good chance.

Callum Styles went down on the edge of the box early on, but the referee waved away the appeals from the home fans.

Robbie Cundy played a a weak header back to Daniel Bentley in goal for Bristol City, but the keeper was able to claim it. 

Domingos Quina thought he was in on goal as he received the ball and skipped a challenge, only to see the offside flag raised against him.

Amine Bassi had the first shot of the game for The Tykes, but it was sent behind by Cundy for a corner.

Morris gave the hosts the lead from the resulting corner in the 10th minute.

Bassi's cross into the box was allowed to bounce, and was flicked on by Matty Wolfe at the back post for Morris who prodded home on the turn.

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Matty James looked to get a quick response for Nigel Pearson's side, but his effort from the edge of the area went well wide.

Bentley had to be alert to punch away a deep cross which was floated into The Robins' box, flattening teammate Robert Atkinson in the process, who was able to continue. 

Claudio Gomes managed to find himself in space on the byline, but his driven cross was sent behind for a corner as Barnsley looked for a second.

The Tykes had another from a corner once again straight after, as Helik glanced the ball beyond Bentley in the 19th minute to double the hosts' lead.

Antoine Semenyo headed just wide from a floated cross as Bristol City looked to get a goal back.

Weimann had a golden opportunity to get a goal back for the visitors soon after.

Semenyo picked the Austrian out from a cross with the league's fourth top goal scorer totally unmarked, but he fired over from close range.

At the other end, Remy Vita had acres of space to cross again for Barnsley, but the Frenchman hesitated, which prevented him from laying the ball off for a teammate. 

Morris twisted and turned to create the space for Gomes to shoot on the back post, but a vital touch from Cundy to head the ball over prevented The Reds from going three goals up.

Styles tried his luck from the edge of the area, but it was blocked and sent behind for a corner. 

Things went from bad to worse for The Robins when Alex Scott was forced off through injury in the 39th minute, with Joe Williams coming on in his place.

Weimann had space to shoot on the right hand side in added time, but Brad Collins was equal to it.

It was Poya Asbaghi's side who led 2-0 at the interval and deservedly so, courtesy of two corners converted by Morris and Helik. 

However, with the last five meetings between the sides at Oakwell ending 2-2, the Reds would have been aware of the importance of continuing to defend effectively after the break.  

Half time score: Barnsley 2-0 Bristol City

Quina found himself in space on the byline once again to start the second half, and he cut the ball back to Styles who was crowded out by defenders who did not allow him to shoot.

Williams looked to thread a pass into Semenyo on the counter attack, but was just unable to pick him out.

He injured himself in the process of playing the failed pass, which meant the substitute had to be taken off early on in the second half. 

Substitute Nakhi Wells attempted to get onto the end of a long ball, but the Bermudan misplaced his pass after managing to meet the ball wasting the opening for the visitors. 

Quina made a superb run into the box and appealed for a penalty which was not given, Morris was still able to shoot but Bentley was able to palm it away.

Styles tried to backheel the ball into a player in the box, but it eventually was deflected back to the ‘keeper. 

Dasilva made a vital interception to prevent Bassi picking out Morris at the back post, as the Moroccan caused all sorts of problems for Bristol City.

Quina saw his shot deflected into the side netting, as the hosts looked to establish even more breathing space in the game. 

Quina was desperately unlucky not to score when he drove at the heart of the Brsitol City defence and flashed his shot just wide.

Chris Martin then headed the ball just over the bar from close range, which would have come against the run of play.

Bassi had a go from range and his effort was spilled by Bentley, who collected the ball at the second attempt.

Vita also tested the English goalkeeper as the game entered the final 15 minutes.

Martins had his header hooked off the line in added time, as The Robins looked to make the final stages of the game interesting.

Full time saw Barnsley secure a vital win at Oakwell, seeing off Bristol City with a 2-0 win.

The defensive and attacking performance was impressive from The Tykes, something which is sure to have pleased Asbaghi.

Takeaways from the match

The Tuesday night encounter at Oakwell saw Barnsley take a crucial three points in their fight for survival, in a match which proved to Reds boss Poha Asbaghi that his side could hang onto a lead.

The win came after draws against Stoke City and Fulham, with both games seeing The Tykes throw away a lead within the final five minutes of the game.

For Bristol City, Barnsley were able to highlight their weakness with defending set pieces, particularly for the first goal, when the ball cleared every Robins defender before Wolfe cut it back to Morris to score.

Pearson's side's poor form on their travels continued, unable to build on their 0-1 win against Blackburn Rovers on Saturday, which was their first win away from home in five months.

Losing Scott, Williams and Semenyo late on to injury in the game will also be a concern for The Robins for their upcoming games.

Stand-out player

From a Barnsley perspective there were several options to choose from for the stand-out player from the game, but the successful delivery of both corners from Amine Bassi made him the stand-out player from the game.

The loanee, who arrived from Metz in January caused issues for the Bristol City defence all evening, and was a constant threat throughout the game for Barnsley.

The playmaker also showed good awareness to create the space needed to fashion openings for himself. 

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Barnsley: Collins, Brittain, Helik, Andersen (c), Vita (Oduor 93'), Wolfe, Styles (Kitching 71'), Gomes, Quina, Bassi, Morris (Cole 70').

Bristol City: Bentley (c), Cundy, Klose, Atkinson, Scott (Williams 39') (Wells 55'), Dasilva, James, Massengo, Weimann, Semenyo (Conway 87'), Martin. 

Referee: David Webb.

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