In the 2001β02 season, after a mediocre start with Barnsley reaching eleventh by mid-September, results started to go downhill and the team found themselves hovering around the relegation zone. Following a 3β1 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough, Spackman and coach
Derek Fazackerley were both sacked.[1] Caretaker manager
Glyn Hodges won his first game in charge 3β2 against West Bromwich Albion, however two 3β0 defeats followed against
Manchester City and
Watford.
Then
Rochdale boss,
Steve Parkin, was appointed full-time manager on 9 November.[2] Barnsley then went on a twelve-game unbeaten league run from December until mid-February which saw them pull clear of the relegation zone, but from then on results went downhill and Barnsley were dragged back into the mire, with Barnsley's away form being particularly poor and were pretty much reliant upon home victories to get valuable points. Despite a battling effort it came down to the final home game of the season, with Barnsley needing a victory against
Norwich City to stave off relegation. On 13 April, Barnsley lost 2β0, and were relegated outside the top two flights of English football for the first time in over twenty years.[3]
^Dyer was born in
Redbridge,
England, and represented them at
U-21 level, but played a friendly game for
Montserrat against Ashford Town in September 2007.