Party pooper!

JOHN Sheridan has revived Athletic’s fortunes since his return to the club.

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ATHLETIC fans will be jubilant if their side avoids relegation — but John Sheridan has promised he WON’T be joining in the party.

The 51 year old has had a huge impact since his return as boss, helping to turn an eight-point deficit into a two-point advantage outside the relegation zone. For a man more used to operating towards the other end of the Sky Bet League One table with Athletic, Sheridan simply wants to get the business of staying up over without too much fanfare.

“I like having a winning mentality. Touch wood, we stay up, then this has still been a really disappointing season,” Sheridan said. “I’m not going to run round and do a celebration on the pitch once we stay up - touch wood again. I don’t want a repeat - and hopefully that won’t happen with me.”

His job hasn’t been made easier by Burton Albion recalling Matt Palmer from his Oldham loan ahead of tonight’s clash at Barnsley (7.45pm kick-off). Carl Winchester is in pole position to step into the gap at Oakwell as Athletic try to move even closer to safety.

Burton manager Nigel Clough told Sheridan he would be invoking his return clause for Palmer after Saturday’s game. The 21 year old had been a major hit at Athletic, scoring the winning goal against Blackpool and carrying great influence in midfield in his 14 appearances.

Burton has failed to win its last four games - which might have prompted Clough to add to his options.

“There was always a chance they would call him back,” Sheridan said. “They have had a couple of bad results. Nigel has been brilliant regarding Matty and he is their player at the end of the day. You’ve got to respect that.

“I have to appreciate what Matty has done and look for someone to try to fill that spot. He’s a good player, my kind of player.”

Tonight’s game against play-off chasing Barnsley was originally scheduled for April 2 and 3, when Barnsley was involved in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy final.