A late Ellis Harrison header cancelled out Liam Kitching’s first half opener to ensure Vale came away from South Yorkshire with a point.

Barnsley’s number five gave the hosts the lead with just minutes to go in the first half, heading home from a Jordan Williams cross on the right-hand side.

With just seven minutes to go, Harrison got his third goal in as many away games, heading into the ground and over the keeper from close range after connecting with Gavin Massey’s cross.

Darrell Clarke made a single change to the 11 that drew 2-2 with Cheltenham Town, with Dan Jones coming in for Mal Benning to make his first start of the season.

There were also debuts for Dan Butterworth and Dennis Politic, with both coming on in the final stages of proceedings, and the latter playing in Vale Colours for the second time in his career.

The first chance of the game fell to Vale, after a well-worked throw-in Barnsley failed to clear a Funso Ojo cross, it then fell to Mipo Odubeko whose strong effort was beaten away by Brad Collins.

Just under 10 minutes later, it was the Reds’ turn to test the keeper through Luca Connell, with his low drive from just outside the box stopped well by Jack Stevens.

Stevens was then called into action again minutes later, managing to save two strong efforts from Herbie Kane and then Jack Aitchison, but the second effort was called for offside despite the stop.

Then came Vale’s biggest chance of the first half, after a corner, Will Forrester managed to send the ball across goal to Ben Garrity, but his header dipped just over the bar.

Chances then kept on coming for the Valiants, with Odubeko the next to come close when Harrison broke free and fed our number 21, whose effort drifted wide of the right-hand post.

The Tykes came steaming forward just moments later, and once again Stevens produced a brilliant save to foil Devante Cole from close range.

Luke Thomas somehow didn’t give the hosts the lead on their next attack, blazing his effort over the bar from just over six yards out.

Vale’s first big chance of the second period came at the 60-minute mark, after great work from substitute James Wilson, he fed Harrison, but his low shot just rolled wide of the post.

Barnsley then came close to doubling their lead on the counterattack through Cole in the 64^th minute, but once again Stevens produced a fabulous save from point-blank range to deny him.

With 20 minutes to go, the Valiants kept pressing for an equaliser, and they nearly got it when Harrison connected with a David Worrall cross, but his strong header went narrowly wide.

Harrison again then managed to latch onto a cross, this time from Dan Jones, and once again his effort just couldn’t quite find the target.

Our number 22 was in the thick of the action all night, and not long after his equaliser he once again headed towards goal from a corner, but it flashed wide.

In the last minute of added time, Stevens proved his worth once again, producing a stunning save to tip a Josh Martin 20-yard effort over the bar.

And Just when you thought you had seen one brilliant save, another popped up, this time from Collins who acrobatically stopped an Ojo long-range curling effort at full stretch.

Barnsley | Collins, Williams, Kitching, Anderson, Kane (70’ Wolfe), Thomas (80’ Phillips), McCarthy, Cundy, Aitchison (70’ Martin), Cole (80’ Norwood), Connell

Unused Subs | Walton, Edwards, Tedic

Port Vale | Stevens, Jones, Hall (58’ Massey), Smith, Worrall (72’ Butterworth), Garrity, Ojo, Forrester (58’ Cass), Odubeko (57’ Wilson), Harrison, Pett (73’ Politic)

Unused Subs | Stone, Benning

Attendance | 9,552 (597 Vale)