Barnsley 1-3 Nottingham Forest: Steve Cooper gets first win as Reds fight back at Oakwell
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Brennan Johnson (centre) has scored twice this season after returning from a season on loan at League One side Lincoln
Nottingham Forest launched a second-half fightback to beat Barnsley at Oakwell and give manager Steve Cooper his first win since taking charge.
The Tykes went ahead against the run of play when Tobias Figueiredo hauled down Cauley Woodrow who stepped up to stroke the penalty kick into the bottom corner.
And Forest made their mounting pressure pay when substitute Lewis Grabban sent Brennan Johnson racing clear and he squared the ball for Philip Zinckernagel to slot into an empty net.
A clinical counter-attack allowed Zinckernagel to return the favour, sending Johnson away to fire in a low shot, and Grabban added a late third from close range, teed up by Alex Mighten's surging run to the byline.
Forest are unbeaten in three matches since Chris Hughton's departure and their second win of the season lifts them out of the bottom three up to 20th, while Barnsley are winless in eight league matches, and slip below them into 21st.
The visitors started the brighter, but Barnsley went ahead with almost their first meaningful attack, and their first goal in three matches, thanks largely to Figueiredo's mistake.
Cooper's side continued to look dangerous on the counter-attack, with Joe Lolley cracking a low shot inches past the far post, but failed to trouble Tykes goalkeeper Brad Collins before the break.
Woodrow then missed a good chance to double the lead early in the second half, directing his shot straight at goalkeeper Brice Samba, but a second goal would have told the wrong story.
And a confident Forest display finally bore fruit as the home defence fell apart in the final half hour.
Grabban sparked the equaliser only moments after coming off the bench in the 60th minute and grabbed his third goal of the season to cap the win, but it was Johnson who forged the turnaround with a goal and assist to give the Cooper era lift-off.
Barnsley head coach Markus Schopp told BBC Radio Sheffield:
"The second half started in a really bad way, we should have scored the second goal, we had the chance, and then we lost the ball too easy and got beaten in the transition moment, twice, which is something we can't accept. It was a punch in the face.
"I saw a Barnsley side in the first half that didn't allow a lot. We came out with the same attitude and again we almost scored a goal.
"After the second goal we fell apart - the players tried to respond, but as individuals rather than a team.
"If we want to compete in this Championship we have to always stick together and even in this situation it is the only way out."
Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper told BBC Radio Nottingham:
"In the first half we were disappointed to go 1-0 down, maybe we didn't do enough to score, but we got in some really good positions. We certainly didn't deserve to be losing.
"The challenge in the second half was to keep going, but to be more productive and more clinical and that's what we did.
"They were three brilliant goals and what pleased me was the amount of players we got up the pitch and then the decision-making and making sure we score.
"Any win in this league is hard-fought, is deserved, and we were more than good for it tonight."