There was yet more derby disappointment for Rotherham as they put in an
uninspiring display against Sheffield Wednesday.
The
Owls won it thanks to two goals in the opening five minutes of the
second half, but they were a level above the Millers for the entire
90 minutes.
It
will mainly be depressing but here's four things we learned from the
game.
Even a top goalkeeper can have an off night
Signing
Rotherham goalkeeper Lee Camp has been touted as Steve Evans' great
last act and his performances in the first two months have backed
that up. However, it was unfortunate that he had to save his weakest display for a derby game as he was at fault for arguably both
Wednesday goals but definitely the first. He did well to get down to
keep out Fernando Forestieri's effort early in the second half, but
maybe could have kept it away from goal instead of into Lucas Joao's
path while there was no denying he was at fault for the second as he
meekly pushed a weak header from Daniel Pudil into the path of
Forestieri. Added to that his slip in the first half when outside the
area where he was lucky that Forestieri did not capitalise. There's no
danger that Camp is absolutely the man to be in the Millers goal, but
he won't be watching this game on the end-of-season DVD.
Sometimes even local derbies can not level the field
The
age-old clichés that form goes out of the window in a local derby are
all very good for filling column inches in the build-up to games, but
this was a stern reminder that even a local derby cannot be a
leveller all of the time. In every single department imaginable,
Rotherham were second best to Sheffield Wednesday and it's quite
simple to say they were beaten by a better team. Wednesday were
dominant in midfield, Glenn Loovens marshalled the defence so well
that he is unlikely to have an easier evening all season while their
quality in attack made them a constant threat. Having players like
Barry Bannan, Ross Wallace and Forestieri mean that even in a
blood-and-thunder local derby, quality comes through.
This game came at the wrong time
You
have to feel sorry for Neil Redfearn. Not only is he trying to
enforce a change in philosophy and mentality, with some players who,
on this evidence, may not be up to it, he is having to do it in a
gruelling run of fixtures. It's unfortunate that the third game in
six days was the one the fans will have wanted to win the most and
after the exertions of taking a point against Reading, the new boss
admitted his side ran out of steam against the Owls. Wednesday made
seven changes for their midweek clash, but there was no such luxury
for a threadbare Millers squad. It has definitely been a baptism of
fire for Redfearn in his new job, but it doesn't get any easier. Next
up is a double-header on the road against Derby and Middlesbrough.
The Millers need desperate of help
It's something that Neil Redfearn alluded to in his post-match interview, but it's blatantly obvious - the Millers need some fresh blood. They are looking particularly blunt in attack as Matt Derbyshire is stuck in a real rut and is looking a shadow of the man that finished last season so well while as promising as Jonson Clarke-Harris is, he is still lacking that goal threat. And when Jordan Bowery is the only option off the bench it's clear that is an area that needs major attention. There are plenty of players, who former boss Evans hailed as quality signings, that cost a lot of money and have yet to produce the goods. A freshen up is definitely required because when the Millers get through the next two away games they enter a run of games where not picking up points is not an option.
