KEEPER Jordan Pickford hopes any heroics will count for something when City play their second TV game in a week tomorrow against Sheffield United.

The on-loan Sunderland stopper proved his team’s star of the show at Barnsley with a string of first-half saves – only for the Bantams to slump after the break and go down 3-1.

Pickford said: “I thought it went quite well for me. Maybe I could have got a hand to the third goal but I made some all right saves.

“If we’d won 1-0, I’d have been over the moon with my performance. But conceding three is not good enough.

“I think it was too good of a start to score that early. We were happy to go in 1-0 up at half-time but then they got the early goal and everything went a bit flat.

“Hopefully we can bounce back in another Yorkshire derby and give the fans the result they want.”

Pickford faces the Blades for the third time in 14 months – for three different clubs.

He was in the Burton goal when the League Two side pulled off a Capital One Cup shock at Bramall Lane last August and returned there in Carlisle colours in March.

He added: “It was a great result for Burton. We got the winner in the second minute of stoppage time but we deserved it.

“When we went there with Carlisle, Sheffield United were on a really good run and we were near the bottom. But we kept them out for a lot of the game.

“Sheffield United are obviously a big club with a lot of supporters but it’s down to us. We’ve got to play our own game and the rest will take care of itself.”

Phil Parkinson’s efforts to bring in a loan striker in time have so far drawn a blank.

The City boss wants to add another attacking face after Mason Bennett was recalled by Derby.

Parkinson said: “I’ve just spent the whole week on the phone trying to get someone in but it’s not proving easy.

“Premier League teams want to keep their players around the squad and keep the under-21 teams strong. It is difficult.”

Parkinson is not surprised to see Sheffield United strongly fancied as promotion contenders again after the progress they have made under Nigel Clough.

He added: “Nigel did an incredible job last season with the FA Cup run (to the semi-finals) and how they transformed their season. It was great to watch and almost emulated what we did.

“It’s built up the expectations on them on the back of that. But everyone was tipping Sheffield United at the start of last year so it’s nothing new for the club.”

Meanwhile, Barnsley have handed a life-time ban to a supporter who sent an abusive message about the Bradford fire during Sunday’s game.