Crazy sessions and night work ... Jonson Clarke-Harris and the Rotherham United striker's bid for improvement

The striker has endured a tough time since his summer switch to AESSEAL New York Stadium for a second stint with Rotherham United, finding the back of the net only seven times in 27 outings and suffering three injuries along the way.

But it's not so long ago that he was topping the division's scoring charts during a goal-laden spell with Peterborough, notching up totals of 33 in 2020/21 and 29 in 2022/23.

Early-morning one-on-one workouts at the Millers' Roundwood base brought him back from a recent calf issue and he's now honing his fitness with extra-curricular activities in his own time.

“Skarzy (fitness coach Joe Skarz), the gaffer and the medical staff put me through my paces,” he said. “It was hard but I actually enjoyed it.

“I've had a really tough rehab. I've been doing crazy sessions, I've not had a minute's rest. But if it gets me into the team and helps my teammates out then there are no complaints from me at all.

“I haven't stopped, I've carried it on. I'm doing my own bits in the evening. I go to the gym. I'm cracking on with everything and I'm feeling good with it, to be fair. I'm in there most nights.”

Get yourself to Bannatyne Health Club at Bramley between 6pm and 7pm if you want to see the 31-year-old building up a sweat.

Clarke-Harris admits that Rotherham fans have yet to see the best of him. The Millers haven't reached the position in the third tier they were tipped to this term and their centre-forward hasn't hit the numbers he and others were expecting of him.

“It's been really disappointing how my season has gone,” said the man who had set himself a 20-plus target. “It has been stop-start.”

A calf complaint cost him most of his pre-season, then he was laid low by a hamstring tear before another calf problem kept him out at the turn of the year.

It's a stark contrast to his four years with Peterborough where he was available for selection virtually every week.

“It's been annoying, really annoying,” he said. “You think you can catch up a bit after not having a full pre-season. You can't. No matter what level you are at, it's impossible.

“I've been chasing. I'd start to have a good run and then I'd pick up a little niggle.

“The latest calf injury, I didn't really feel much pain in it. It just felt a little bit tight so I carried on and carried on and made it worse. That was my own stupidity.

“I thought I was good to train, then the boss was like: ‘No chance, we're getting you in for a scan’ When we found out what it was, it was more serious than I'd thought.”

That meant more hours in the treatment room, more hours in the gym until he was ready to make a February return to the squad at Reading.

“I know what I have to go through with calf injuries,” he said. “I know the bike sessions, I know the running,

“Sometimes you can lose your motivation to get on the bike and do your four x four minutes. But it's my career at the end of the day. It's going to be me who breaks down if I don't do it properly.”

The last three matches have found him back in the starting line-up. He gave an encouraging display in the win at Bristol Rovers and a better one in the triumph over Leyton Orient before slipping from the standards he'd set himself in defeat at Wrexham.

He said: “I feel like I've done okay. I’ve won plenty of knockdowns. Ideally, I like to be on the end of knockdowns and crosses into the box but you do your bit for the team.”

Having not put his name on the scoresheet since a December double during a victory against Northampton Town, he's seeking to keep his place and bag his first goal of 2025 at home to Exeter City this Saturday.

He is hoping that less is more because there isn't as much of him as there used to be. At manager Steve Evans' behest, he shed the pounds during his recovery with the aim of increasing his mobility.

“It's good for my overall game,” the new lightweight Jonno said. “Players now are younger, stronger, faster. As I'm getting a bit older, I'm having to change a part of my game to keep going.

“I'm about five kilograms (11lbs) down. It's what the boss wants. If you want to play for him, you have to do what he says, it's as simple as that.

“I've done well. There have been no shortcuts. I feel better, fitter, stronger. I feel ready to push on for the last 11 games.”