Clarke Oduor features as Barnsley win pre-season game

Kenyan international Clarke Oduor clocked 45 minutes for Barnsley in the 2-1 win over League Two outfit Rochdale in a pre-season game staged at the Crown Oil Arena.

This was the first game for Barnsley since suffering heartache in the Championship Promotion Playoffs semi-finals against Swansea after their first pre-season game against Flyde postponed.

Oduor who had was on the periphery last season under former head coach Valérien Ismaël who has since joined West Bromwich Albion started on the bench against Rochdale.

The encounter against Rochdale marked the first game in charge for Markus Schopp who joined the club from Austrian side TSV Hartberg where he had managed since 2018.

It only took Barnsley 13 minutes to break the deadlock through Carlton Morris who nodded his header in the front post from a Carlton Morris free-kick.

The Championship side doubled their lead eight minutes later with a corner straight out of the training ground when Conor Chaplin who received a short corner delivered a pinpoint cross to Liam Kitching who tapped in from close range.

Schopp rang the substitutions at halftime as he made wholesale changes with Oduor handed some game time for the club for the first time this year.

Rochdale were handed a route back into the tie in the 52nd minute when Abraham Odoh was upended in the penalty area with Aaron Morley holding his nerve to slot home the spot-kick.

Oduor made the most of his rare playing time as he impressed with his explosive runs and incisive passing throughout the second half with the game ending in a 2-1 win for Barnsley.