Rotherham United are preparing to take on Bolton Wanderers at the weekend – a Wanderers side who are somewhat an unknown quantity coming into this game.
Starting with minus twelve after financial difficulties Wanderers also began the season with just three professionals on their books and played their last two games under a caretaker manager.
They’ve got just one point this season leaving them on minus eleven going into this game but things now seem on the up with the club having been bought, Keith Hill being appointed as manager and they have enough professionals on the books to fulfil their fixtures.
Which is all very well for Bolton.
But where does this leave the teams they have yet to play?
They’ve played five league games with a team full of youngsters and have, expect for the draw at home to Coventry, lost every other game and shipped goals at the same time.
So, all of a sudden they have been bought out, got money in the bank, presumably paid their bills (?) and brought in players who have now had two weeks to concentrate on Saturday’s game.
The Millers have yet to win a game at home and many of us, me included, were saying a week ago that this is a ‘must win game’.
But, is it?
This new Bolton squad are going to want to show the staff and fans what they can do. They are going to try their damnedest to win this game in front of a sell-out away stand.
This game is not going to be easy for Paul Warne’s men – they are playing a team they haven’t been able to watch, don’t know how they’ll be playing, don’t know which eleven Keith Hill will start.
On the other hand does this mean that Warney will have been able to concentrate on his own team, on what his side should be doing instead of what the opposition will be doing and how we will have to counteract that.
It is a ‘must win’ game because we haven’t won at home yet this season. It is a ‘must win’ game because the fans are getting restless – but, it is only September and really, thinking about it, the ‘must win’ games are really for the end of the season when we need wins to go up or stay up.
So really, yes it would be great to win and the Millers should always play for a win, especially at home, but ‘must win’ is probably putting pressure on the team that they don’t really need. What we all have to do is get behind Rotherham on Saturday, sing our hearts out, send positive vibes to the men in red and white, in short, do our bit from the stands.
Warne should go before we get any worse than we against Doncaster.He has not got a clue,the best way to defend is to Attack,So do that please
To be fair, David, for at least 55 minutes I thought we did that on Saturday.
Have we got another Alan Stubbs situation no I don’t think so end of October will be crucial for Warne. My opinion is that we have been too used to playing with wingers and the middle of the park lacks the quality of last year’s men hopefully this will be nullified when they get playing week in week out together.
Terry miller’s fan since1960 utm
I don’t think there will ever be another ‘Alan Stubbs situation’ Terry – well, at least, I hope not. Or a ‘Kenny Jackett situation’ either.
You ask the question is Saturday a must win game! It most definitely is a must win game, Warne is under pressure, the desperate move of changing dugout in the belief that he can direct is hopeless team when defending the away end is a very desperate move from Warne and shows that he is running out of ideas and time, the party is over Warne time to clear out your office and head back to Norfolk
As Terry says, Stuart, I really think we have to give this team, with Warne at the helm, the benefit of the doubt until the end of next month.
Caz, it should be a “must win” game but won’t be. Bolton will be an interesting test. One reason is that I am constantly told by some other Millers that all the new players at RUFC must be given time to gel and the manager must be given time to decide how to get the best out of them. Yet the very same supporters are worrying about Bolton for the very reason that “They’ve got loads of new players who will want to impress…etc.” In my view this is entirely inconsistent. If RUFC are feeble today and Bolton play as a unit then Warne should be sacked.
Whether it was a ‘must win game’ or now, Kevin, we won so let’s hope we can get something on Tuesday night and go again at home next Saturday.