Barnsley will always struggle to prevent bigger clubs from "cherry-picking" their best players, according to director Don Rowing.

Midfielders Danny Drinkwater and Ricardo Vaz Te both left Oakwell during the January transfer window after outstanding contributions during the first half of the season, but Rowing insists such departures are part of the modern game.

He said: "We had Danny on loan and Leicester wanted him. They had the money and Manchester United sold him. There was nothing we could do. Bigger clubs will always cherry-pick our players if they're doing well.

"Our skipper Jacob Butterfield was destined for bigger things until he suffered his horrendous knee injury and Ricardo Vaz Te again expressed his desire to leave the club.

"His contract was up at the end of this season and he had the opportunity to move to West Ham with a chance of playing in the Premier League next year. If someone wants to leave there is very little we can do about it. You don't want an unhappy player at the club.

"What we can do, and have done, is give [manager] Keith [Hill] funds to bring in good replacements and we're happy that he has done that."