It seems fitting that in his early playing days Conor Washington played football alongside working as a postman, because when it comes to endeavour and willingness to work hard for the team, he never fails to deliver.
The summer signing has been a constant thorn in the side of Championship defenders since his arrival from Charlton Athletic but has perhaps not been rewarded for his efforts with the goals his general play deserves.
Washington added another to his tally during Saturday’s win over Huddersfield and just like his strike against Reading, he put the ball exactly where the ‘stamp’ would goal in the Mears South Stand net.
Like himself, the forward feels the team hadn’t been posting the points that their general play had deserved in recent weeks, but feels the recent back to back victories over the Terriers and Stoke City will now act as a letter of intent.
“On a personal level it was nice to score, but in terms of the team as well, it was a great reward for all the hard work that we’ve been putting in,” Washington told www.themillers.co.uk.
“In the last few weeks we perhaps hadn’t been getting the rewards our effort levels had deserved, but we managed to get that on Saturday and then follow it up with another great result on Tuesday, too."
“I think our approach – especially at home – caught teams out in the early stages of the campaign and we were really blowing sides away.
“Obviously they are always going to go and look at that and do what they could to stop us but I feel like If I get a chance, I’m going to score.
“I’m at an age where I feel composed in front of goal and I’m looking forward to getting more chances and hopefully adding more to my tally.”
“Obviously it has been a long time since I’ve played in the Championship, but I’m really enjoying the challenge of testing myself against top players at a great level, in front of big crowds.”
New Manager Matt Taylor has overseen seven points from his opening four games since joining the Millers from Exeter City at the start of the month.
Washington was quick to point out that the core principles the team had set themselves at the start of the campaign remain the same and says the results on the pitch prove that the players have really bought into Taylor’s ideas.
“I think the new manager has come in and done really well and that is backed up by the results we’ve had so far.
“It was always going to take time for him to implement his ideas across to us and that process is still underway.
“The core principles are still the same, in terms of working hard for each other. On the ball and off it, there have been slight tweaks and as a unit I think we have taken to it quite well.
“Obviously, we have not had loads and loads of time on the training pitch but the players have really bought into it and again, that shows with the results we’ve had.”
Only three teams have picked up more points on home soil than the Millers this season and they are back at AESSEAL New York Stadium on Saturday when they Hull City.
Washington insisted that the club’s home form will be paramount to their chances of achieving their objectives this term but was also encouraged to see the Millers record their first away victory of the campaign at bet365 Stadium in midweek.
“I think we’ve really taken to the level. I had a bit more of a watching brief in the recent game against Blackburn and that acted as a huge indicator of just how important the first goal is in the Championship.
“Our home form has been really encouraging and it is something we spoke about at the start of the season.
“For us to do what we want to do this year, we have to make our stadium a tough place to play and take as many points off teams as possible.
“As we’ve experienced, it is tough to go away from home in this league and get points, for any team. So it is really important that we continue this strong run at home and start picking up more results away, just like we did at Stoke.”