From Crawley Town to Rotherham United ... how Steve Evans turned Tony Stewart's head

The Scot had taken the West Sussex club from the Blue Square Premier Division (now the National League) to League Two in 2011 and, the following season, he was spearheading their charge to League One.

Rotherham were seeking a new manager after parting company with Andy Scott and the rest is history.

Chairman Tony Stewart made Evans his chosen man in April 2012 and successive Millers promotions from the fourth tier to the Championship followed in the next two campaigns.

“I saw Crawley play on TV and couldn't believe what a great attacking side they were,” Stewart said at the time. “That's when I first made enquiries about Steve.”

Several players who had been in Evans' squad at Broadfield Stadium ended up with him at New York Stadium, with centre-halves Pablo Mills and Claude Davis, goalkeeper Scott Shearer and striker Matt Tubbs – who'd scored 37 goals in 41 Blue Square appearances – all wearing Millers colours.

The boss left S60 in 2015 but is back in the hot-seat for a second spell after Stewart turned to him again in April following the club's relegation from the Championship.

Evans engineered a 2-1 League One for Rotherham the last time the Millers made the long trip to Crawley, in August 2013.

The boss said of his five years at Broadfield Stadium: “I have such fond memories of my time there: magical cup runs, magical promotions.

“I worked with some magical people. The people in West Sussex were magical with me. I lived down there for the best part of four years.

“When I go back, I get treated like royalty. They're an incredible bunch of people. But obviously I want to do what I've done with other clubs and come away with three points.

"They're an exceptionally talented team. They pass the ball for fun. This stat will surprise a lot of people: Crawley are second in League One for possession. Only Birmingham are above them.

“They've just taken on a young manager (Rob Elliot) who's been told to carry on in that fashion. They're a real threat. This is going to be a tough afternoon for us at times.” Rotherham are in 17th spot, four places above Crawley.

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One to watch

Ronan Darcy is in his second season with Crawley Town and the forward has scored eight times in 71 appearances. Born in Ormskirk, he started out at Bolton Wanderers before a 2022 move to Swindon Town where his sole season brought four goals in 46 outings. The 24-year-old played in all three of Crawley's play-off matches as they were promoted from League Two last term

Form guide

Crawley: LDDDLD

Rotherham: LLWLLW

After 2-1 loss at Wycombe Wanderers in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy, Crawley had a 0-0 draw at Bristol Rovers last Saturday.

Past meetings

Jan 25 2014, League One: Millers 2 Crawley 2

Kieran Agard 2

Aug 17 2013, League One, Crawley 1 Millers 2

Agard, David Worrall

Mar 24 2012, League Two: Crawley 3 Millers 0

Nov 26 2011, League Two: Millers 1 Crawley 2

Brett Williams

Opposition boss

London-born Rob Elliot cut his managerial teeth in the National League where he led Gateshead Town to a sixth-placed finish and silverware in the FA Trophy Final last season. He moved to Crawley last month after Scott Lindsey left for MK Dons. Now aged 38, he was a goalkeeper in his playing days, spending nine years with Newcastle United and winning four Republic of Ireland caps.

Man in the middle

Crosby-based Matthew Corlett is in his second season on the EFL list and is taking charge of a Rotherham match for the first time. He began refereeing as a teenager and, now in his early 30s, is chairman of Bootle Referees Society. He works for PricewaterhouseCoopers International Ltd, one of the top four accounting firms in the world. His 11 games this term have seen him issue 64 cautions and show two red cards.

The odds

The Millers are 17/20 to win and Crawley 14/5. A draw is 12/5. The clubs have played each other only four times, with all the matches coming in the last 13 years.