Paul Warne post Oxford United...
Millers Manager Paul Warne spoke to the media after seeing his side defeat Oxford United 3-1 at the AESSEAL New York Stadium.
The win meant Rotherham have now gone 12 matches without defeat with victory over Oxford being their fifth win on the spin.
“I thought Oxford were really good opposition tonight and they had a lot of the ball as well. They caused us problems and I felt we needed that two-goal advantage.
“I was really pleased with how we started the game then we scored. I wasn’t enjoying some of the decisions the lads were making but we rectified that at half time. They started the second half a lot better and played the way I want them to play. We created enough chances to win the game comfortably but you’ve got to take them. It’s another win to take us closer to where we’re trying to get to.”
Anthony Forde opened the scoring with a screamer from the edge of the box before Richie Towell’s effort on the rebound made it 2-0.
The visitors did pull a goal back just before half-time as James Henry fired home but the game was put to bed by Michael Smith – scoring his third goal in a Millers shirt – as he swept in man-of-the-match Forde’s cross.
“It was end-to-end football,” he added. “I said to the lads before the game that these next three games are against teams we haven’t beaten yet. There were lots of balls flying across the six-yard box.
“Our team are an honest bunch,” he continued. “Maybe to go 1-0 up so early, we maybe went away from putting crosses in the box and playing forward. I don’t know if it was complacency, it possibly is. Maybe the weekend took the wind out of a few. We looked a bit jaded tonight.
“The lads have given their all and there were some amazing performances I was really proud of. It was just nice to get another win tonight.
“I wasn’t really that keen on making changes unnecessarily. Joe Mattock tightened up a little bit and he wasn’t one of the ones who was jaded. It was a shame to use up one of our attacking subs. I wanted to put Matty Palmer in the game and Willo (Ryan Williams) was excellent at the weekend and I didn’t get to put him on.”
Saturday sees a trip to high-flying Shrewsbury before a return home the following week with a South Yorkshire derby against Doncaster Rovers.
“They’re all big games now,” he added. “They’re knocking off fast now. We’ll dust them down and get them up for a cup final at the weekend.