Joe Newell talks to www.themillers.co.uk...
Rotherham United midfielder Joe Newell has admitted his return to first-team football was tarnished by the weekend defeat to Barnsley.
Despite defeat at Oakwell, the former Peterborough playmaker took some comfort from his first appearance since ankle surgery after replacing Jon Taylor in the latter stages of the South Yorkshire derby.
Newell, who was one of the standout performers for the Millers last season, was back in the first-team reckoning ahead of schedule and is now looking to kick on during the international break.
“I had pencilled in the game with Bristol City as the comeback date, so to get told last week that I could be in contention was a huge bonus,” Newell told www.themillers.co.uk
“I have been working hard, and without the help of Warney, Mike Preston and Denis Circuit I wouldn’t be in the position to be back so soon. They have done so much work with me over the summer and it has paid off.”
Newell admitted it was a bad day at the office for all concerned on Saturday, but he is now looking to use the international break as an opportunity to get his fitness levels up for the game with Bristol City on September 10th.
“It was nice to be back but the result and performance wasn’t what we wanted,” Newell continued.
“We were bitterly disappointed with the day, and we know we let ourselves, the club and the fans down.
“We have some time to take stock, and from a personal point of view I have time to work on my fitness.
“I played 60 minutes in a training game today, and then there is a reserve game that I am looking at next week and that should give me some much needed match sharpness.”