Millers and Hatters have to do it again

Both Rotherham United and Luton Town will be in the hat for tomorrows third round FA Cup draw after today’s two-two at a very cold Don Valley Stadium this afternoon.

Rotherham looked like they would be the team to score in the first ten minutes of the game with Stephen Brogan, starting his first game of the season, saw his looping shot from a free kick go just over the Hatters crossbar. Minutes later a Nicky Law cross finds the head of Tom Pope who puts his header wide of the goal and on the ninth minute a snap shot from Pope goes just over the crossbar. Ryan Taylor perhaps should have got the first goal of the game but his flick went straight to Kevin Pilkington in the visitors goal and Pilkington was in action again a few minutes later when he got down well to save at the feet of Gary Roberts. On twenty minutes Alan White intercepted a ball and sent it to Kevin Gallen who fed Adam Newton down the left. Newton found Claude Gnakpa on the edge of the box, who walked past Nicholas and the Millers defender triped the Frenchman in the box for a penalty. Up steps Tom Craddock and puts the ball past Andy Warrington to put the Hatters one up. After that there was only one team in it, and it wasn’t the red and whites. Gallen has a shot blocked with the ball falling to Gnakpa who saw his shot sail over the crossbar. Warrington made an easy save from Craddock while White was inches away from meeting a Kevin Nicholls corner. Warrington came to the rescue again saving from Shane Blackett and Ian Sharps clears, what looked like a certain goal from Craddock, off the line. The board went up for time added on, which, to be honest. Luton couldn’t complain about because they’d been taking a long time over corners, throw-ins and goalkicks, and in the third minute of that time a low cross in from Pope sailed past the vistors defenders to find leading scorer, Adam Le Fondre, who doesn’t miss from there to make it one-one at half time.

As the temperature plummets, the Millers had the first chance of the second half, when Ian Sharps header is deflected behind for a corner. Roberts had a header saved by Pilkington while Le Fondre was looking lively around the box. And it’s Roberts who finds Brogan on the sixty-second minute and the twenty-one year old sends a header firmly over Pilkington into the back of the net to make it two-one. Now this is when the Millers should have thrown everything including the kitchen sink at Luton but instead they seemed to back off and let the visitors get on top again, though neither team had many chances. But a good through ball from Craddock finds Mark Nwokeji, on for Gnakpa, who puts the ball past Warrington to make it two-all. A few minutes later Gallen had a shot that went wide while at the other end Pilkington does well to save from Pope while Roberts went close with a shot on target. Danny Harrison replaced Ryan Taylor and his first touch of the match is a shot at goal which goes inches wide of the post. In the final minutes of the game, Brogan looked like he would seal it for the home side when his shot beat Pilkington but drifted just wide of the upright.

it was a freezing afternoon at Don Valley and the Millers fans had little to cheer about. Luton came and did well getting what they wanted and their six hundred and fifty fans were the ones going home happy.