Anger, satisfaction, gratitude ... mixed emotions for Matt Hamshaw on an afternoon that brought a last-day victory for Rotherham United

The Millers came back from behind to beat Peterborough United 2-1 at AESSEAL New York Stadium and give their new manager a 14-point haul from his first eight matches at the helm.

Hamshaw didn't like what he saw early on as his side fell behind but appreciated the quality of their fightback and was then gratified that so many supporters remained after the final whistle for the staff and players' lap of appreciation.

Posh went in front after just 29 seconds when Abraham Odoh slipped inside to score with a low shot before Sam Nombe restored parity before the break and Cameron Humphreys headed in a 66th-minute clincher from a corner.

“I was the angriest I have been here for the first 20/25 minutes,” the boss said. “I kind of let myself off the leash at half-time. I'd spoken all week about mindset and having a right good go. I keep emphasising that.

“You felt it in the stadium ... once we got stuck in and won our tackles and got tight to people, the fans got behind the team.

“The second half was really pleasing. It's been a bit of a common thread: we ran out of a bit of energy in the last 15 minutes. We could have won by a lot more. However, we could have been two or three down in that first 25 minutes.

“All in all, it's nice that we go away with three points. It's also nice that the fans stayed at the end. I'd like to put on record my thanks to them because it would have been easy for them not to.”

The manager was referring to events before his late-March appointment when Rotherham failed to realise their potential, leading to a mid-table finish instead of an anticipated promotion push.

He remained a mixture of disappointment and happiness as he assessed the match as a whole.

"The defending wasn't good enough to start with," he said. "We let people get at us and come inside. We'd spoken about that beforehand.

“We thought that Peterborough might play inverted wingers and they did. It wasn't good enough from us. You can't go a goal down in the first minute without laying a glove on the opposition.

“We reacted really well to it, to be honest. Second half, for half an hour, is how a Rotherham United team should look.”

Posh boss Darren Ferguson criticised his team who concluded their campaign in 18th position despite, like the Millers, being tipped to challenge in the top reaches of the division.

“It was horrible after the first 30 seconds,” he said. “We had a great start and thought: ‘Can we go and carry that on?’

“I think their first goal (Nombe following up Louie Sibley's shot) sums the season up. Rotherham had more desire.

“When we did get through in transitions, there was a lot of space. We had one or two opportunities, but their two goals are really soft. We did not dominate the ball or create much. We didn’t get the basics right.

“We go away and restock now. Just because we’re Peterborough, we don’t have a divine right to be at the top of the league.”