Rotherham United manager Paul Warne and assistant manager Richie Barker are relishing the chance to build on the success they’ve had at the football club, after signing fresh terms to keep them at AESSEAL New York Stadium until 2023.
Warne stressed that he’s surrounded himself with good people at the club and heaped praise on all his staff, as well as the Chairman Tony Stewart for the support he has given him during his time in the role.
“It’s a nice feeling to get the recognition that the Chairman thinks we’re doing a good job, fundamentally that’s all we want to do,” Warne told www.themillers.co.uk.
“We’ve had a good journey together, had a good deal of success and changed the culture of the club significantly. I think it’s a really good club to come to and it’s easier to attract players.
“With the help of all the coaching staff, I feel we’ve really improved players and we’re a good healthy club, in that respect, I feel like we’ve ticked a lot of boxes. This year is another challenge that we’ll take on and it’s great that the chairman has kindly offered us new deals.
“It took 10 minutes, none of us wanted to leave, we’ll continue to work as hard as we always do to have a good season.
“We’ve had massive improvement through Ross (Ross Burbeary, performance manager) and his department and we’ve now got Rob (Scott) in recruitment. I’m coming up to nearly four years in the role and it’s definitely changed me in many ways. I’ve surrounded myself with good people, we couldn’t do it without them.
“Any management team want to do their best, the Chairman has been kind enough to stick with me when many wouldn’t. I’m very aware of the patience he’s shown and I like to think we’ve paid him back.”
Rotherham United assistant manager Richie Barker echoed the thoughts of the manager and believes that the strong relationship between himself, Paul Warne and first team/ development coach Matt Hamshaw has been a big factor in the trio’s success in South Yorkshire.
“There’s not a day gone by in the last three years that the three of us haven’t communicated together. We talk every day and everything we do is about making the club better, whether that be on the pitch or off it,” Barker told www.themillers.co.uk.
“The important things is recognising what your strengths and weaknesses are and I think that’s the importance of a group of staff rather than doing it on your own. The manager has his name above the door and we’re here to support him, having been a manager myself, I understand the importance of that.
“It’s also important to recognise what everyone’s role is. We all value each other’s opinions on everything and we all do it for the good of the football club.”
Barker stressed that the decision to sign a new deal was an easy one for the management team to make and now that they've have been signed, they can look forward to another season in the Sky Bet Championship and beyond.
“We’re embarking on another season in the Championship, and to do that after signing new deals is something we’re now really looking forward to.
“It’s been talked about for quite a while now, and now that it is done we can concentrate on the football.
“It shows commitment from both sides and we appreciate the gesture from the Chairman. It wasn’t something that we had to think about for very long. We’ve enjoyed our time, hopefully we’ll enjoy the next three years and then who knows beyond that,” Barker added.