Sheffield Wednesday tasted defeat in their penultimate warm-up game in preparation for the new season, losing 2-0 against Yorkshire rivals Barnsley at Oakwell.

An early Martin Devaney strike and a second half header from Serbian Goran Lovre sealed the result, as both managers took the chance to experiment.

Alan Irvine made nine changes to the starting line-up that featured at Scunthorpe last time out, with Darren Purse and Marcus Tudgay the only two survivors.

And Wednesday didn't get off to the best of starts. Lovre raced on to a long ball over the Owls defence, before cutting back from the byline for the onrushing Martin Devaney, who calmly guided the ball beyond Arron Jameson.

Adam Hammill then saw a rasping 30-yard free-kick diverted over the crossbar by Jameson, as Wednesday struggled to get a foothold in the game.

The Owls continued to soak up the pressure, as Devaney came close to doubling his tally when he met looping cross at the back post, but Jameson was again alert, palming over the crossbar.

Wednesday did string together a series of passes down the right flank in a flowing team move just before the break. Three of the new summer signings were involved, as Jon Otsemobor, Neil Mellor and Chris Sedgwick combined, with the latter eventually miss-cueing his left-foot volley way over the crossbar.

It proved to be only a brief rest bite from the Barnsley pressure, as Lovre fired over from just outside the box, as the referee put end to a lackluster first 45.

The second half started with much more promise, with Mellor twice coming close to equalizing for the Owls. The on-loan Preston man first saw his close-range effort fisted away by Luke Steele, before narrowly failing to connect with Otsemobor's whipped cross from the right flank.

The Owls had clearly upped the tempo after the interval, and Tudgay then saw a header from a corner well held by Steele in front of a vocal Wednesday away following.

But their hard work was undone when the Owls were caught by a swift counter attack from the Tykes. Hammill dispossessed James O'Connor before setting Devaney free down the right flank, and his deep cross to the far post was met by Lovre's header, which eluded Jameson and sent the home fans into raptures.

Having conceded a second goal, manager Irvine rang the changes, with a total six substitutions, which included the first appearance of Giles Coke in a Wednesday shirt, following his summer transfer from Motherwell.

But it was another substitute who created a golden chance for Richard Hinds. Gary Teale found space down the right flank, before whipping in a perfect cross which Hinds could only head over the bar.

Tommy Miller, who'd also come on as a second half substitute then saw his long range header held by the goalkeeper, as the Owls pressed forward.

But there was to be late drama, as the Owls slipped to their second defeat in four days.

Barnsley: Steele, Foster, Doyle (Colace 71), Shackell, McEveley (Potter 46), Hammill (Adam 86), Hassell, Butterfield, Devaney (Boulding 86), Lovre (Bennett 76), Gray (Dickinson 71)

Unused substitutes: Preece, Branson.

Owls: Jameson, Otsemobor, Hinds, Purse, Jones (Spurr 76), Sedgwick (Teale 71), O'Connor (Potter 71), Palmer (Coke 71), Boden (Miller 71), Tudgay (Johnson 71), Mellor (Heffernan 71)

Unused substitutes: O'Donnell.

Attendance: 8,544