Rotherham’s season was
plunged into dire straits as a second successive defeat to a relegation rival
sent them back into the drop zone.
After last week’s damaging
loss to Charlton, the Millers suffered another massive body blow as they went
down to a last-gasp 2-1 defeat to Bolton.
It leaves them two points
from safety and crucially allowed Neil Lennon’s men pull themselves nearer to the Millers.
Here's five things we learned from the game.
Rotherham’s soft underbelly just won’t go away
Rotherham’s inability to
tough it out during rough periods and close games out is proving costly and if
it carries on in this manner could easily be the difference between going down
and staying up. While the knives have been out for Neil Redfearn in fans’
forums after this defeat, no one can honestly say that the Millers deserved to
lose the game and Redfearn was even preparing himself to come out and talk
about how he was disappointed with a draw. However, not for the first time this
season, the Millers crumbled when they needed to be strong and it left them
returning over the M62 empty-handed. Bolton did not have a clear-cut chance in
the second period until their goal, which came deep into injury time, yet when
they did the Millers didn’t deal with it. Their inability to pick up points in
games they have competed in and be on the right side of the fine margins means
no one in the top five leagues of English football have more defeats than them.
That flaw is flashing like a red beacon with the word relegation on it.
Missed chances hurt you
Hey, here’s a new one for
you. Rotherham competed with their opponent in a Championship game but failed
to take their golden chances and they ended up losing. That’s not happened much
in the last 20 months has it? (note the sarcasm). While this was by no means a
performance that was on the level of any of their wins this season, nor was it on
the level of last week’s horror show against Charlton. As you will have just
read above, the Millers deserved to take something out of the game. The only reason
they didn’t was their inability to put the ball in the back of the net. Andrew
Shinnie, who produced an impressive teaser of what might be to come, should
have buried a chance when through on goal midway through the first half. Joe
Newell the same. But if the Millers are going to miss the quality of chance
that Shinnie did in the second half then it is no wonder they don’t win many
games. In acres of space following a knockdown, Shinnie shot straight at Ben
Amos in the Bolton goal when he could have picked his spot and if that had have
gone in, not many Millers would have doubted they would have gone on to win the
game.
It’s been a costly week
Fans of a nervous disposition
may not want to take a look at the fixture list over the next six weeks. Redfearn
has said that his side have 16 cup finals left this season, well they are going
to be devilishly difficult ones as seven of their next eight games are against
teams currently residing in the top half, with six of them in the top eight. That
makes their last two defeats doubly damaging as not only have they allowed
Bolton and Charlton to make ground on them but they have also missed the chance
to put some points on the board against so-called weaker opposition ahead of a undoubtedly tough run. Of course,
the Millers could easily go and surprise a few of those teams and recoup the
dropped points if they can replicate the manner of performance against Hull and Brighton. But, with their frailties outlined already, they could quite
easily go through that run of games without winning.
Bolton v Rotherham: https://t.co/HZAQddz7YV via @YouTube— Rotherham United (@OfficialRUFC) February 7, 2016
Grant Ward is not a central midfielder
The arrival of Chris Burke
has seen Grant Ward shifted into a more central role, but in the last two games
it has shown that he’s better suited to the right. The on-loan Spurs man does
not get the space he requires in the middle of the park to utilise his pace and
energy and still in the habit of wanting to take too many touches, he has found
himself getting crowded out. Too often the game passes him by. He’s at his best on the right where time and
plenty of grass in front of him to run at defenders and get up the field in
support of Danny Ward.
Unlucky or asking for trouble?
Has Redfearn walked under a
ladder? Has he put some shoes on a table? Or has a calculated gamble backfired
on him? After long-term injuries to Leon Best and Stephen Kelly, both signed
midway through the season after being without a club, Redfearn’s latest foray
down that avenue has ended in the same result after Luciano Becchio missed the
Bolton clash with a groin strain. Although it’s not thought to be serious,
Becchio’s absence at the Macron was felt as there was little presence off the
bench and he would have probably scored the chance that fell to Shinnie or Richard Wood late on. The Millers boss will say to lose all three like he has, in addition to Aimen
Belaid and Lee Frecklington’s injuries, is extremely unlucky and there has to be
some bad fortune to it. But cynics will say that the Millers were asking for
trouble in hanging their hopes on such players.
