Boss Paul Warne braced for Rotherham United Covid cases in next few days

The Millers were hit harder by Covid last season than any other side and the spread of the new Omicron variant is causing a fresh global spike in the disease.

The boss felt some of his players were physically below their best in yesterday's 1-0 win at Cambridge United that kept the Millers top of League One and extended their unbeaten run to 21 games.

Numerous teams have been forced to postpone matches in the last few days because of Covid cases and, with daily testing due to begin again after the weekend under emergency EFL guidelines, the situation is likely to escalate.

"I'll be amazed if our football club escapes. I mean, many Premier League games are off," Warne said after watching Dan Barlaser's second-half strike seal victory at the Abbey Stadium.

"I'll be amazed if our players are the only group in the world that haven't been affected by it. 

"I was just looking at the data for the first half and the players covered decent distance but their top speed wasn't up there. I think all the lads are fully fit but I don't know if they've picked up something this morning at the hotel.

"Hopefully that isn't the case, but that's just my gut feeling."

Fixture congestion caused by rearranged games cost Rotherham their place in the Championship last term and Warne is desperate for there to be no repeat of a schedule that saw his team forced to play 12 times in 37 days.

"I am worried," the boss said. "I wanted this game on today, there's no disputing that. We're Covid-scarred more than any other club, I think. It had a massive effect on us last season.

"Because the FA Cup and the Papa John's Trophy as well as the league, we've got loads of fixtures. We don't want a pile-up .

"Every time the physio phones me I'm like  'Here we go' because he never phones with good news. Luckily, we're okay, but the testing really starts in vigour next week, and obviously I'm concerned. We have no under-23s side to lean on like other clubs do. If we lose four or five players, we're in trouble."

The Millers' next match is scheduled to be the Boxing Day trip to Accrington Stanley that marks the halfway stage of their campaign.

"Hopefully we'll have enough to go to there," Warne said. "We'll just see how we get through the week. Every day, there are different things. I'll be devastated if the games don't go ahead. We don't know how the opposition are.

"Some people here today (at the Abbey Stadium) have probably got it (Covid) but they don't know. So the lads can live the best life but still catch it."

Warne revealed on Thursday that "one of two" staff members had contracted the disease but so far the players have remained unscathed.

More than 85 per cent of his first-team group have been vaccinated.