Manager Matt's '20 to 30 per cent' promise in Millers reset
MATT Hamshaw took a break from targeting new players to make a pledge about the ones he inherited when he took the hot-seat at Rotherham United in the closing stages of last season.
The Millers had a 2024/25 campaign to forget under the previous managerial regimen before the new man's arrival for the last eight matches sparked an upturn in form in results and led to a 13th-placed League One finish.
Now, having had a full pre-season in which to prepare his squad, Hamshaw is confident he can get much more out of the men signed by predecessor Steve Evans.
“This group of players we have will be 20 to 30 per cent better,” he said. “For a number of reasons, they weren't as good as they should have been last year. We'll see an increase in their output.”
Key to that is the presence of conditioning expert Ross Burbeary who, along with Hamshaw, was part of the Rotherham backroom team that won three promotions to the Championship between 2018 and 2022 during the reign of Paul Warne.
After spells at Lincoln City, Derby County and Huddersfield Town, Burbeary returned to AESSEAL New York Stadium in May to head up first-team medical and sports-science provision.
“The lads will certainly be fitter because we've brought back Ross who is a great appointment,” the manager said. “He was excellent when he was here before.”
The Millers have stepped up their recruitment in the last ten days and Hamshaw is bringing in players of a certain type in his mission to revitalise the club after two disappointing seasons.
“You have to have players who ‘get’ it and want to be here,” he said. “I don't want players who are coming to Rotherham United just because the club is paying the most money. I want people who appreciate what it means to be here, have something to strive for and, maybe, are at a little bit at a crossroads in their career. That doesn't make them bad players.
“In the six years I was here last time, players had points to prove. Some of them have gone on to do amazing things.”
The likes of Chiedozie Ogbene, Semi Ajayi, Viktor Johansson, Matt Crooks, Dan Barlaser and Ollie Rathbone all joined the club during Hamshaw's first spell at New York and went on to sign for bigger sides.
Hamshaw looked ahead to the 2025/26 League One campaign and said: “You can't guarantee results, you can try to guarantee work rate and performances. The club is in a bit of a reset mode.
“I want us to have a team that we can all be proud of, a team that the fans know are giving everything. We had that before when I was here and I'm keen to get that back.”
The boss believes that the third tier will be a hard, tight affair next season but maybe not quite as daunting as the most recent one when big-spending Birmingham City and Wrexham, who both went on to be promoted, were in the ranks.
“It's a division we can be competitive in if we're fit and organised,” he said. “There's going to be ups and downs. I'm not going to make any mad predictions about where we're going to be. I'm excited but I'm not getting carried away.”