Barnsley 0-2 Peterborough United: Tykes on the brink of Championship relegation
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Jack Marriott has scored eight goals in 27 appearances for Peterborough this season
Peterborough United kept their slim Championship survival hopes alive with a narrow win at Barnsley to all but confirm the Tykes' relegation to League One.
Jack Marriott opened the scoring for Posh at Oakwell, striking home Sammie Szmodics' pass in the 25th minute.
And Frankie Kent rounded off the win for the visitors, nodding in a corner 15 minutes from time.
With 21st-placed Reading drawing 4-4 with Swansea, Peterborough are seven points off safety with three games remaining.
Barnsley stay rooted to the foot of the table and are 11 points off the Royals with four matches left to play.
The Tykes will go down if they fail to beat Huddersfield Town on Friday.
Posh will be relegated if Reading beat Hull City on Saturday or they lose to Nottingham Forest on the same day.
Barnsley were the better side for much of the game with Domingos Quina hitting the crossbar early in the first half and Carlton Morris forcing a fine save from Peterborough keeper David Cornell with a looping header.
But once Posh went in front through top-scorer Marriott they frustrated their opponents with Barnsley limited to half-chances in the second half.
After Kent met Harrison Burrows' corner with a well-placed header to make it 2-0, Morris went close to halving the deficit but his shot was deflected over with Posh goalkeeper Cornell off his line.
Despite both sides avoiding the drop for another week, relegation to the third tier still looks all but certain.
Peterborough manager Grant McCann, speaking to BBC Radio Cambridgeshire:
"It was a good result for us. I don't think it was the best of games to be honest, it was a scrappy, tense affair.
"But I'm really pleased with our lads, we dug in, stayed strong and were made to defend. And when we needed to be clinical we were.
"The boys have put an unbelievable shift in over the last nine games. I'm pleased with the reaction the players have given me.
"All we can do is focus on us. If we somehow stay up then great. If we don't we'll have a plan and try and put a squad together to try and win the league."
Barnsley head coach Poya Asbaghi, speaking to BBC Radio Sheffield:
"The performance was okay, in terms of creating chances and being the better team, we were. But in the end football is about the result. They were calm in front of goal and we weren't.
"We created enough chances to score two or three goals. We could have won anyway, even with them being efficient up front.
"We're all very disappointed, it's really quiet in the dressing room too.
"As long as there's a chance [to stay up], there is hope. We're still going to give it a shot."