11 matches to save Rotherham United's season

Eleven chances for Rotherham United pick up priceless points in the mission to not still be in the drop zone come 5pm on League One's May 2 final day.

Let's all hope that the long Saturday-evening trip home from Wycombe Wanderers is a happy one, eh?

Manager Matt Hamshaw has been through it all before at AESSEAL New York Stadium, when he was a coach under Paul Warne - not at third-tier level, where the Millers were serial promotion-winners, but in the division above, where three survival attempts ended in relegation.

The boss believes that his past can help in the present.

“Walking into the training ground, somebody who hasn't experienced it, they might have a bit more dejection, they might be a bit more down,” he said. “You've also got to be careful that people don't think: ‘Oh, it's all right.’ We're losing games. It's a really fine balance of making them confident but also understanding the responsibilities.

“I think we've recruited fairly well - as always, everything could be a little bit better. We've also missed big players, and that's been my frustration, really. Injuries have come at the wrong time in certain departments. We've had all defenders out, we've had all midfielders out, we've had all strikers out, rather than one in each position and it doesn't affect things as much.”

There have been tantalising signs - Exeter City away, Plymouth Argyle at home - that Rotherham have it in them to stay up. However, to use an old cliché, the table doesn't lie.

Hamshaw's men may not be without talent, but they may be without enough character and resolve. These are troubled times. Some fans are being patient and supportive, some are vocally being the opposite.

The Millers have tightened up defensively. Unfortunately, they've also tightened up, in the wrong way, at the other end. Five blanks in seven matches doesn't keep you in a division.

How they could do with Sam Nombe rediscovering the touch that had previously made him a guarantee of goals under Hamshaw. How they could with coach Richard Wood being a few years younger, leading my strength of will, breaking sweat and bones for the cause.

After a hectic Tuesday-Saturday-Tuesday schedule, this week has given them time to breathe before the run-in begins in earnest on Saturday as high-flying of Bolton Wanderers come to new York,

“It's tough because you want to give the players some recovery time, but at the same time you want to make sure you're doing the work in the areas you need to,” Hamshaw said.

“We've seen recently that goals have been a bit of a problem. Some of the set-piece stuff hasn't been anywhere near good enough, some of the free-play stuff at times hasn't been good enough.

“We've got to do a lot of work and we've also got to be mindful that a lot of bodies have had a lot of games. We brought in a lot of bodies in in January. We've got to get them up to speed and this is probably the first week we've had where it's not ‘recover, walk through and play’.”

The boss inherited a number of 30-somethings when he took the hot-seat. In his two transfer windows since, he's generally gone for youth, mainly by choice, partly through budget constraints.

Old and been there before or young and no fear? Which is better when you're scrapping for your lives?

“Good question,” Hamshaw said. “You'd like to think that they'd both help each other for those very reasons. The young lads probably haven't tasted that feeling - that sensation of rejection, dejection, whatever you want to call it. The older players have, but they can use their powers of recovery to know that this is how football is. I think you need a blend.”

The class of Duncan Watmore offers hope, even if he can't handle 90 minutes at this stage of his career. Pray for a quick recovery from Dan Gore because the starting 11 is so much stronger with the Manchester United loanee in it.

It's tight at the foot of he table and everything might go down to the wire. “It usually does, doesn't it?” Hamshaw said.

Rotherham are in 22nd spot, with 35 points, and immediately above them sit Leyton Orient, Wigan Athletic and Blackpool. The Millers, three points from safety, still have the first two of those teams to play. Every side up to Exeter City in 15th spot, on 42 points, have their worries.

So, 11 games to go.

To be clichéd again, 11 cup finals.