Barnsley coach Conor Hourihane (Image:Jonathan Gawthorpe)placeholder image
Barnsley coach Conor Hourihane (Image:Jonathan Gawthorpe)
CONOR HOURIHANE is hoping that Barnsley's glamour FA Cup trip to Liverpool in the new year will have positive ramifications for the Reds in the January transfer window.
The Oakwell outfit are set to bank a tidy six-figure sum from the lucrative appointment at Anfield and some of the proceeds could bolster Hourihane's hand in the winter market.
Barnsley have already banked just over £95,000 in cup prize money after reaching the third round. Even if they lose on Merseyside, as most would envisage, they will be guaranteed an additional £26,500.
Proceeds from gate receipts and potential televised coverage would considerably add to the pot as well.
Barnsley's Marc Roberts, second left, celebrates scoring his winning goal in added time in the FA Cup first-round tie against York City with captain Luca Connell, right. Photo: Tony Johnson.placeholder image
Barnsley's Marc Roberts, second left, celebrates scoring his winning goal in added time in the FA Cup first-round tie against York City with captain Luca Connell, right. Photo: Tony Johnson.
On the potential for window spin-offs, Hourihane, who has been named as the League One manager-of-the-month for November, added: "Potentially. I'm not really sure. But obviously, from a financial point of view, we obviously know what the tie will bring.
"It will obviously help the club in a time where it's great to get it and it's not easy for clubs at times as well. It's brilliant. It's a really exciting one and we'll see what happens in January as well.
"It’s great for everyone. You win these (cup) games and you get to the third round and want to get that big tie. And luckily enough for us, we're one of those (lower-division) teams to get that big tie. So it's a really exciting one.”
One thing that Hourihane is promising is that his players will not get distracted ahead of the marquee third-round appointment, with much work to do at League One level between now and then as Barnsley seek to bolster their top-six credentials.
The Reds chief, who could welcome back Josh Earl and Marc Roberts for Saturday's home game with Leyton Orient, added: "There's loads of games in between that. We've got Leyton Orient and then we've got Exeter and Mansfield and we're into a couple of busy games then before the Liverpool game.
"And as great as it was, when we had the draw on Monday, I felt there'd be loads of talk of it on Tuesday and it's 'will we take our eye off the ball?'.
"And to be fair to everyone, no one really mentioned it, if I'm honest.
"There was one or two talks about it in the staff. But the players didn't really mention it and that's the way I wanted it to be. We know it's on the horizon, but we've got a lot of work to do before then."