Warne – Millers Were ‘Out Muscled’

Rotherham United Manager Paul Warne thought his players were ‘out muscled’ this afternoon against Bristol Rovers at the Memorial Ground.

Speaking to iFOLLOW after the one-nil defeat the Millers Boss said, ‘We created loads of chances in the first-half but didn’t get in on any of them and the chance that they scored from is inexcusable. But there was still forty minutes left and we should have had control of the game but we didn’t and that’s frustrating.’

It seems to me that when the Millers go one behind we seem to let a bit of panic in and get frustrated. It also seems to me that we can only play for forty-five minutes although, saying that, we did have chances towards the end of the game.

Yes, it was a defeat but it was a narrow defeat – Rovers haven’t lost a home game this season so, I suppose, a one-nil defeat isn’t that bad. But, another defeat is going to frustrate the fans.

We really have to take those chances especially away from home. Teams, as we found at last week, are going to want to stop the team who were in the Championship last season from playing.

When the opposition are on top we have to ride it out and keep going. I’m wondering if one of the reasons we don’t seem to do that is that we haven’t got an out and out leader on the pitch? Someone who the younger players can turn too for advice and support.

‘We didn’t look at our best in the second half but I don’t want anyone blaming the players,’ Warney carried on, ‘I have to get the swagger into them and if I don’t it’s my fault.’

Meanwhile Rovers Boss Graham Coughlan told Bristol Live that he thinks the win has given his players a bit of belief saying, ‘That’s a game where Rotherham matched us up, they went man for man and were reliant on balls in our box, winning aerial balls and crosses. We stood up to that this afternoon and at times showed a little bit of quality.’