VIDEO: Chris Wilder explains his frustration after Sheffield United's derby defeat to Barnsley at Oakwell

United could have gone back into the play-offs with victory in the day’s early kick off at Oakwell, but the Tykes went ahead through Gary Gardner before John Fleck and Leon Clarke put the Blades ahead by the midway stage of the second half.

Oli McBurnie and Tom Bradshaw then struck for Barnsley to secure the three points.

The hosts started brightly and Gardner opened the scoring with a first-time shot from the edge of the box, after United failed to clear a corner properly.

Fleck made the Blades' pressure count, equalising in emphatic style and it was not long before Clarke capitalised on uncertainty in the box and made it 2-1.

McBurnie bundled home to level the game again before Bradshaw met Kieffer Moore's cross to head in the 88th-minute winner.

And Wilder said: "I've got to say, the two teams, one wanting to stay in the division and the other wanting to get out of the division. I thought the team who wanted to stay in the division were better in the first half.

"They won more first and second balls, played quicker, played with more intensity. We looked a little bit leggy, we played far too slow, backward and square in the first half and when we did get into our stride a couple of times in the first half I thought we looked dangerous.

"Knowing what my team's about, we got into them a bit at half-time, made a couple of changes and then got into our stride, got into our rhythm, built pressure and built momentum. From then we took the game away from the opposition and I've got to say from 2-1, we should go to 3-1 and 4-1.

"But yet again, boring everybody that interviews me after every game, it's the clinical bit."