DAVID McGoldrick is not limiting himself by setting a target for goals this season.
The 38-year-old netted ten in ten games, including a hat-trick at Leyton Orient on Saturday, and has 15 for the season with 12 in the league.
McGoldrick told the Chronicle: “No target, just goals.
“There’s loads of games left.
“I could set a number then you score a hat-trick and that target changes.
“So there’s no target, just go out each game and score, that’s my target.”
The treble in London on Saturday was McGoldrick’s second for Barnsley after netting three times against Manchester United under 21s in the EFL Trophy in October.
“This one means more, but goals are goals. I got the matchball signed when I scored against Man Utd 21s.
“It was a competitive game, so it was a hat-trick.
“But obviously a league hat-trick is a good day at the office.”
The treble was completed by a deflected strike which hit the underside of the bar but bounced back in.
“The way it spun off the crossbar, I thought it would go over and obviously, with the goal line technology, I think he would have given it anyway.
“But, you know, just to see it go over, was a nice feeling to know about the hat-trick.”
Barnsley were backed at Orient by about 600 fans for the 12.30pm kick-off.
McGoldrick said: “It took us five hours to get down on Friday so I don’t know what time they would have had to leave.
“They were loud, and obviously singing my name, singing all the boys’ names, singing their songs, and fair play to them.
“It’s not cheap, it takes up most of your weekend, and they fully deserve it after all the travel that they’ve done over the season.”
Usually, after Barnsley win, the star player leads the celebration with three ‘fist pumps’ towards the fans, but McGoldrick stayed in the background while Mael de Gevigney did it.
McGoldrick said: “I hate the limelight. I’ve never done it in my career, and I won’t, and it’s not an insult, I’ve just never done it.”
Head coach Conor Hourihane said of McGoldrick: “Lads gravitate towards him in the dressing room, ask him for football advice, ask for life advice.
“And even though he mightn’t have been firing earlier in the season when Davo (Davis Keillor-Dunn) was scoring these goals before he left, you can always count on him to be ready.
“He’s an unbelievable professional, the way he trains and works every single day.
“And now he feels like the focal point of the team.
“He’s repaying us massively.”
Hourihane had planned to rotate McGoldrick and January signing Tom Bradshaw but the former is starting as the only striker due to his form.
“I can’t leave him out and if I do, I think he’ll be knocking on my door wondering why. I think over the last few weeks, I’ve tried to take him off in games. Huddersfield last week, whether it was the right decision or not, you have to get Bradders on the pitch and give Didzy (McGoldrick) a rest, whether it’s 20 minutes, half an hour or whatever. He’s got to start every game at the minute.”
