Flood of outside interest in Rotherham United hot-seat before Matt Hamshaw said 'yes'

The Millers moved quickly to confirm the appointment, handing their former coach a three-year contract only a fortnight after his initial March 30 arrival on a deal until the end of the season.

They fended off substantial interest in the post from elsewhere during that two-week period, chief operating officer Paul Douglas has revealed.

“We had lots of approaches,” he confirmed.

Hamshaw won three of his first four matches after replacing Steve Evans and the Millers were keen to tie down a man who grew up supporting them and won three League One promotions as a key member of old boss Paul Warne's backroom staff.

“Why waste time?” said Douglas. “Matt's come in and hit the ground running. He's had an impact across all areas of the club. The evidence of that has been clear in the performances of the team in some difficult games.

“It's not like he’s new to us, we know the calibre of person he is. I've always been impressed by his football mind. He's always had interesting and innovative ideas."

Rawmarsh-raised Hamshaw began his coaching journey in Rotherham's youth set-up before his successful partnership with Warne that extended to another third-tier promotion when the pair subsequently moved to Derby County.

“I've always felt that Matt would be a great fit for us,” Douglas said. “I felt he would come in and make a difference. He's made a bigger difference, I think, than any of us could have anticipated. I'm not that surprised, though, because I know what a quality individual he is.

“His time under Paul here and at Derby has given him that extra layer of experience to add to his ideas.”

The COO believes that Hamshaw's lifelong love of Rotherham can give the Millers an edge over other sides in League One next term.

“We've all seen the photo of Matt as a mascot here as a tender young thing,” he said. “Through his own endeavours, he's come to lead the club.

“That's going to bring things to the role that you wouldn't get from someone coming in from outside. I think that's a massive thing for us.”