Barnsley 0 Bristol City 0: If anyone doubted that Gary Johnson's philosophy on football is driven by pure pragmatism, here was the proof.

City had scintillated in victory at Charlton four days earlier, displaying the kind of fluid motion and slick passing which became the manager's hallmark during his spell in charge of Yeovil.

But it is not always possible to be beautiful in the ultra-competitive Coca-Cola Championship and this was a case in point.

Against opponents scarred by a below-par start to the campaign and desperate to make amends on home turf, the Robins were forced to fall back upon the more prosaic virtues of hard work, organisation and discipline in order to return with a point and safeguard an unbeaten record which now stands at three games.

If City were punished for being too open in defeat at Wolves and Sheffield United, their performance amid Oakwell's inhospitable environs showed they have learned their lesson well.

Mindful that his team had been overrun 3-0 on their last visit to Barnsley, Johnson sought to suffocate the Tykes, deploying a five-man midfield, encouraging his wingers to tuck in when not in possession and inviting the home side to break down a well-drilled defence.

It may not have been pretty, but it proved mightily effective as City kept a third consecutive clean sheet to maintain their position in the top six.

Untouchable against Charlton, the expectation had been for more of the same and City certainly began as though they meant business. But when the goal their supporters craved failed to materialise, Johnson's charges resorted to staunch defence to protect what they already had.

The manager's ethos is simple; if you cannot win a game, then be sure not to lose it.

It is a viewpoint shared by centre-back Liam Fontaine, whose splendid performance at the heart of a hard-pressed defence typified City's new-found resolve and recalled the never-say-die attitude which characterised last season's march to the play-off final.

Chelsea were beaten here in the FA Cup in March and Fontaine argued: "This was a good point for us.

"Barnsley are one of those teams that come out hard at you and try to beat you up and you have to give as good as you get and weather the storm.

"It's important to be able to cope with their physical side and then impose your own physicality on them and I think we did that quite well.

"We know we didn't reach the level we did at Charlton, but it's always pleasing to keep a clean sheet. If you can do that, you're going to win the game eight times out of 10."

He revealed: "We used the international break to reorganise after losing at Sheffield United and the results are there for all to see.

"We've taken seven points from our last three games and that's a good return in the Championship."

Johnson watched the opening 20 minutes from a lofty perch in the stands and must have been pleased with what he saw. City took Barnsley by surprise, seized the early initiative and dominated possession.

Had the searing Gavin Williams drive which flew agonisingly wide of Heinz Muller's goal been positioned a few inches further to the right, the outcome might have been very different.

However, Barnsley eventually cottoned on, manager Simon Davey made the necessary adjustments and, thereafter, the home side looked the more likely to score in a game of few chances.

Their best openings fell to former Leicester striker Iain Hume, who was foiled by a wonderful save from Adriano Basso on 12 minutes and then steered his shot wide with only the keeper to beat following an incisive pass from Brazilian midfielder Anderson de Silva in the second half.

Pressed into defence after the break, City rode their luck, most notably when Jamal Campbell-Ryce was teed up by Hume and saw his shot come back off the cross bar after Basso had been penalised for picking up a back pass.

Barnsley boss Davey felt his side should have been awarded at least one penalty. But referee Mike Russell twice waved away vehement Yorkshire appeals, once after Hume had tangled with Jamie McCombe in the first half and again when Rob Kozluk went to ground under challenge from Brian Wilson deep into time added on.

Although Wilson appeared to make the slightest of contacts, Barnsley's full-back was already on his way down and the Hertfordshire official was right to caution him.

A relieved Johnson admitted: "My heart was in my mouth at that point. We'd worked hard to keep them out and it could all have gone wrong at the death."

In the end, justice was served and the Robins escaped with a point.

Barnsley (4-4-2): Muller; Foster, Moore, Souza, Kozluk; Campbell-Ryce, Colace, Anderson, Devaney (Rigters 82); Hume, Macken (Odejayi 74).

Bristol City (4-5-1): Basso; Wilson, McCombe, Fontaine, McAllister (Webster 71); Trundle (Maynard 59), Elliott, Williams, Johnson, McIndoe; Adebola (John 59).