Daley nets to help Millers win

Rotherham United got back to winning ways at a wet Don Valley this evening against an Accrington side that will probably wonder how they came out of the game with nothing.

Andy Warrington was on fine form for the Millers twice saving from Terry Gornell in a first half that was devoid of much goalmouth action. Andy Proctor got clear of his man on twenty minutes but saw his shot clear Warrington’s crossbar while the Millers first shot came on the half hour mark when Marcus Marshall, who was limping due to a two footed challenge that went unpunished by referee Mark Brown, faced with three Accrington defenders, shot from just inside the box but his shot was deflected wide for a corner. Seven minutes later the visitors got a corner which Ian Craney took and which was cleared by Liam Henderson, who had signed earlier today on loan from Watford. The ball fell to Luke Joyce but his shot went wide.

The Millers looked a lot sharper coming into the second half and in the opening minutes, Henderson burst into the oppositions box but his shot went wide. The next action was on fifty-eight minutes and produced the first goal of the game when Henderson and Le Fondre got into the box, Henderson seemingly tripped and while the Millers players were appealing for a penalty and the Stanley players were getting ready to argue the toss, the ball fell to Omar Daley and he hammered the ball past Ian Dunbavin and into the net from some twelve yards out. But the Millers had Andy Warrington to thank for keeping their lead when he did well to get down to a shot from Gornell and a minute he pulled off a magnificent save from Joyce, tipping the ball over the bar. Fifteen minutes from time the visitors did have the ball in the net from Gornell but he was flagged offside and Warrington again did well to save from Jimmy Ryan not long afterwards. In stoppage time it was the Millers turn to have a goal disallowed after a good run from Nicky Law found Daley who calmly slotted the ball into the net before seeing the flag raised for, what we all presume, was off side, though, in my eyes, it can’t possibly have been. But the Millers did increase their lead on ninety-four minutes when some good work from Henderson allowed Le Fondre to get free in the area and put a low ball into the back of the net for his twentieth goal of the season.

It wasn’t the best game I’ve ever seen and, at times, I thought we were going to be lucky to hang on for a point, but a win, at this stage of the season, is a win. Shrewsbury on Saturday in going to be a very big game.