Rotherham 0-1 Barnsley: Adam Armstrong strikes for Tykes

Barnsley closed the gap on the Sky Bet Championship play-off places with a 1-0 south Yorkshire derby win at Rotherham.

It had been a difficult week for the Reds, losing star men Conor Hourihane and James Bree to Aston Villa, but they ended it on a high thanks to Adam Armstrong's second-half goal at New York Stadium.

With much of the top six not playing due to the FA Cup fourth round, Paul Heckingbottom's men took advantage and are now just a point behind Sheffield Wednesday.

For Rotherham, it was the familiar feeling of defeat - their 17th of the season - and the gap to safety drifted back to 11 points.

It was action-packed from the off as both sides created chances in the opening exchanges. Danny Ward, sought after by a host of Championship clubs, should have put the Millers ahead after a lightning quick break but his controlled volley was superbly blocked by Angus MacDonald while Ryan Kent sent a curling effort wide for Barnsley at the other end.

As the first half wore on, though, it was the Reds that began to take control and they fashioned several good opportunities to take the lead.

Aidy White, a former Miller, shot across goal after a burst into the box, with Tom Bradshaw doing similar shortly after with their best chance coming on the half-hour mark.

A long ball by Marc Roberts exposed Stephen Kelly's lack of pace and Armstrong nipped in and from the edge of box his effort grazed the top of the crossbar.

Rotherham, trying to avenge an embarrassing 4-0 defeat in August's reverse fixture, were still having their moments and they also hit the woodwork when Joe Mattock's 30-yard shot hit the outside of the post.

The break helped the home side and they came out after the restart with the initiative and Ward, valued at £5m by Warne, almost lived up to that price tag, but his nonchalant chip was superbly tipped over by Adam Davies.

The Millers could not make the breakthrough, though, and Barnsley made them pay by taking the lead in the 70th minute. Armstrong had given a warning when he earlier flashed an effort wide, but he was successful at the second attempt with a cool finish from eight yards after a defence-splitting pass by Kent.

That killed off the hosts' hopes, who lost all their threat, and Barnsley had a chance to make it 2-0, but Marley Watkins, who has handed in a transfer request this week, saw a fierce effort tipped over by home goalkeeper Richard O'Donnell.

Barnsley boss Paul Heckingbottom:

"I'm pleased to come out with the three points. I thought it was exactly like a derby, not a huge amount of quality but a lot of endeavour, full-blooded and really competitive. Rotherham tried to make it difficult for us and we had to really match what they threw at us.

"There were two moments of quality from us and they mattered. One was Kenty playing the ball through the full-back for Arma and the second was him tucking it away, which I thought was a fantastic finish.

"Then as the match worn on we got more and more on top, then finished the game the stronger. The nature of the game and how combative it was with Rotherham imposing their direct style on us, the front two were both feeding off scraps."

Rotherham boss Paul Warne:

"It was a tight game. I thought the lads went toe-to-toe with them but we need to score when we are on top.

"The game is decided by the smallest of margins. After 60 minutes I thought it had 0-0 written all over it. Obviously that wasn't the case. I don't think we played our best football and I don't think Barnsley did either, the game could have gone either way.

"I really like Barnsley, they have got pace throughout the team. Unfortunately we didn't create a chance as clear cut as theirs."