The last time these two sides met the game ended 1-1 and Rotherham had three players sent off in a feisty affair, back on November 19th 2005.

That is the calibre of entertainment that this Yorkshire derby holds. The two have not met since that eventful fixture 11 years ago and both sides are now very much apart in terms of stature and league standing.

With Rotherham in the Championship and Barnsley in League One, an uneducated football fan would assume that the Millers are simply bigger because they are in a league above. Well that just is not the case and there is a lot more to these sides than people know.

In recent years Rotherham have had more of the limelight in the media and have been largely more successful.

The erratic combination of Steve Evans and the English media brought a lot of attention to the club and not in a bad way; the Millers went on to gain successive promotions in Steve Evans' first two years in charge.

Rotherham's time in the Championship has been unforgiving however and that fateful day at Wembley seems a long, long time ago. United are in the thick of a relegation battle and since returning to the Championship last season have never been higher than 14th.

Barnsley have gone on in opposite fashion to their fellow red and white Yorkshire neighbours in recent seasons. They sit mid-table in League One having fallen out of the Championship in the 2013/14 season - the same season that Rotherham went up - and are slowly trying to make their way back up to the second tier.

The Tykes are currently managerless following the departure of Lee Johnson and it appears the club is in a recovery phase as they look to settle in League One.

When the sides were battling against each-other back in 2005 there will have been a large debate about which club was bigger, back then Rotherham played their football in Millmoor and were nearly relegated that season while Barnsley actually defeated now Premier League side Swansea City on penalties at Wembley.

11 years since the two last played each-other and the two are rarely talked about together anymore, so we've decided to bring the rivalry back into action and FootballLeagueWorld writer Rafie Thompson is giving you THREE reasons why Rotherham United are a bigger club than Barnsley.....

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PRESS THE IMAGE BELOW TO SEE THE 3 REASONS!

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The Atmosphere

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Oakwell, Barnsley's home ground, has a capacity of just over 23,000. Compare this to the New York Stadium which holds just over 12,000.

Stadium size and capacity filled is a large factor in determining the size of clubs and their fan-bases.

Rotherham had an average attendance of 10,240 last season which means that on average the Millers fill 85% of their stadium.

The New York Stadium is tightly packed and one of the smaller stadiums in the country, but the atmosphere is what brings it to life.

Whether under Warnock, Redfearn or Evans, Rotherham fans ensure that the players feel assured with the electric atmosphere that is created.

The 2-0 win over Hull City demonstrated that even though the Millers are in the thick of a relegation battle, they always have a never-say-die attitude.

The play-off semi-final against Preston two years back was a memorable night because of the atmosphere the fans created.

Not to say that Barnsley won't light up Wembley with their support in the Johnstone's paint trophy final come April.

They have a large following but do not fill their stadium like Rotherham do, in recent times attendances at Oakwell have increased due to their long unbeaten run but the stadium is not filled like it used to be.

The players

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Head to head - Barnsley have the edge over Rotherham with 19 wins compared to 17.

However seeing as these teams have not met for 11 years a lot will have changed. Rotherham have had more success in recent times and that is down to the calibre of their players.

A combined XI between the two from the past few seasons would likely see more Millers players than Barnsley players.

Names such as Lee Frecklington, Ben Pringle and Alex Revell all helped the club to back to back promotions and the likes of Jonson Clarke-Harris, Lee Camp and Kirk Broadfoot are helping the club stave off relegation for a second season.

While Sam Winnall and Conor Hourihane have been impressive for Barnsley, based on the calibre of players; Rotherham are simply better.

Recent Successes

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11 years ago when these clubs last played, Barnsley will have been seen as the bigger side but this is definitely no longer the case.

Rotherham had back-to-back promotions in the 2012-13 and the 2013-14 seasons and famously came-back from 2-0 down at Wembley to gain promotion to the Championship.

Barnsley currently sit in League One and were relegated two seasons ago and have not had any general success for the past few seasons.

They have a chance to win the Johnstone's paint trophy in April, but until then Rotherham have been the more successful club in recent years.

Do you think Rotherham have been more successful than Barnsley in recent years? Are they a bigger club?