With 2020 almost upon us, D3D4 Rotherham United correspondent Ian Bradley looks back on 10 years of the Millers and gives us his picks for their Team of the Decade.
Check out his XI here:
1 GK Adam Collin
Excellent shot-stopper & penalty specialist who commanded his area well & had a good understanding with his defence. Adam played 71 games for the Millers between 2013-2016 & was a vital part of the team that won promotion to the Championship via the playoffs in 2013/14 saving two penalties as the Millers beat Leyton Orient in the Wembley final shootout.
2 James Tavernier RB
Now plying his trade in the SPL as Glasgow Rangers captain James was another vital member of the 2013/14 promotion-winning side. Whilst we only had him for 27 games that season on loan from Newcastle, what a 27 games they were. His performances were superb & so were his free kicks & his 5 goals were vital in the club’s successful promotion bid.
3 Joe Mattock
The only member of the current Millers squad to make the line-up. Joe joined us from Wednesday in 2015 & is well on his way to 200 appearances for the Millers. Mr consistency in my opinion & you never get less than a 7/10 from Joe. Defensively sound, a good organiser & an excellent crosser of the ball. He occasionally captains the side in Richard Wood’s absence.
4 Will Vaulks CM
Will was brought in from Scottish side Falkirk in 2016 with glowing praise from the Scottish clubs fans & arrived at the NYS as a relative unknown. “Yeah right” amongst the more cynical Millers fans but in his 125 games for the club he was the beating heart of the team. Box to box midfielder doesn’t do him credit, he could pop up anywhere. He was just as likely to be hacking the ball off the line as he was smashing in a 30-yard shot. Captain fantastic who wore his heart on his sleeve.
5 Kari Arnason CB/CM
The club’s most capped international with Iceland Kari joined the Millers from Aberdeen in the summer of 2012 & was an integral part of the Millers back to back promotions from L2 to the Championship between 2012/14. Another great leader & organiser, classy on the ball, good in the tackle & a great passer. Kari went on to have a great tournament in Euro 2016, marking Cristiano Ronaldo out of the game in the group stage match & assisting in one of Iceland’s two goals v England in their famous victory.
6 Craig Morgan
Craig joined the Millers on a free transfer from Preston in the summer of 2012 & in his 91 games for the Millers in the three year period he was with the club he was the hard as nails reliable uncompromising CB every successful club needs. Another former captain & if the club was hanging on for a narrow victory & the ball needed to be put in row Z “Morgs” would put it there. What you got with Craig was 100% commitment, ferocious in the tackle & a rollocking for his teammates if one was needed. Yet another member of the 2012/14 double promotion-winning squad.
7 RM Kieran Agard
No, I haven’t taken leave of my senses. Kieran joined the Millers from Yeovil in the summer of 2012 & was only a bit-part player in the 2012/13 promotion-winning side though his goals against Fleetwood, Bradford & Plymouth were vital in the clubs successful bid. Manager at the time Steve Evans experimented with playing Agard on the right side of midfield at the start of the 2013/14 season & this turned into a masterstroke as the striker turned midfielder plundered 21 League goals from the right-wing in a wonderful season.
8 Lee Frecklington CM
Yet another former captain & the one I would have captaining this team, what can I say about Frecks apart from thank you?
He bled Red & White in every one of his 170 games for the club. Like Vaulks he was an all-action box to box midfielder with a special knack for scoring vital career-defining goals such as the winning goal v Aldershot in April 2013 that saw the club promoted to L1 in the first season at NYS, the goal v Reading in April 2015 that preserved the club’s Championship status & the goal v boyhood heroes, Leeds, in a 2-1 victory in April 2016 that was an integral part of the “Warnock miracle” that saw the club avoid relegation from the 2nd tier in 2015/16. When Lee left the club to rejoin Lincoln weeks after scoring his first Millers hat trick v Walsall in January 2018 it was akin to a bereavement amongst Millers fans on social media, such high regard he is held amongst the Millers faithful.
11 LM Ben Pringle
A left midfielder with a wand of a left foot & yet another vital component of the 2012/14 back to back promotion-winning side under Steve Evans tenure, Ben’s delivery from corners & free kicks are stuff of NYS legend, as are his vital goals, particularly his winning goal v local rivals Sheffield Wednesday in the League Cup in 2013/14 giving the club their first home win v the Owls in any competition since 1976. Ben wasn’t blessed with pace but his ferocious shot & set-piece delivery was at times incredible.
9 Adam Le Fondre ST
“Alfie” was & still is a goal poacher supreme. 52 goals in 93 Millers games tells it’s own story. Unfortunately, Adam never got to play for the Millers at NYS with his two & a bit Millers seasons were played at the clubs former home, the god awful Don Valley Stadium. Adam scored 25 League goals in the club’s unsuccessful 2009/10 L2 promotion bid that ended with a 3-2 Wembley defeat to Dagenham & plundered another 23 the following season when the Millers finished 9th.
He had scored four in four games at the start of the 2011/12 season when he joined Championship Reading for an undisclosed fee. Unquestionably THE best striker in my 48 years regularly supporting the Millers deadly anywhere in the penalty area he hardly failed to at least hit the target.
10 Matt Derbyshire ST
You may think a return of 17 goals in 69 games is modest but “Darbs” brought more to the team than just goals. He was the link between midfield & attack & had a superb work ethic which endeared him to the Millers support. We had just two seasons of Matt 2014/16 & he will always be remembered for scoring the winning goal at Hillsborough which ensures legend status for any Millers player.
Subs
Honorary mentions to the following who have “won” a place on the subs bench
12 Marek Rodak GK: A superb two-season stint in goal on loan from Fulham
3 Joe Skarz LB: Rock solid LB that never let the club down
14 Michael O’Connor: Brilliant midfield organiser & mainstay of the 2013/14 promotion squad
15 Kirk Broadfoot CB: Two superb seasons in the Championship from this hard as nails Scottish defender
16 Richard Wood CB: He’s magic you know. Captain of the current squad, 100% commitment, got a goal or two in him, just ask Shrewsbury, lovely guy who leaves everything on the pitch.
17 Daniel Nardiello ST: Scorer of the first competitive goal at NYS, classy finisher & the club’s top scorer in 2012/13
18 Semi Ajayi CB/CM: Equally adept at CB or CM, had a superb season for the Millers last season that helped secure his move to WBA where he’s currently helping Albion towards the Premier League.