Match File ... Date with an old boy as Rotherham United take on Salford City

Rotherham United will come up against a familiar face when Salford City arrive at AESSEAL New York Stadium this weekend for a League Two clash.

In the Ammies side is expected to be Joe Powell who spent two seasons with the Millers before heading to the Peninsula Stadium when his contract in S60 expired in the summer.

The 27-year-old has started all six of Salford's matches and scored the winner against bottom club Port Vale last Saturday.

He managed two strikes in 91 matches for Rotherham.

City have invested heavily in a bid for promotion, following last term's defeat in the fourth-tier play-off final against Notts County, and Powell is one of a number of new additions to their squad.

Others include former Doncaster Rovers wide man Luke Molyneux, ex Millwall frontman Macauley Langstaff and midfielder/centre-half Brendan Wiredu who left Plymouth Argyle to move north.

They signed experienced centre-half Dan Scarr from Wrexham on the last day of the transfer window.

Two successive wins have pushed them up the table and they travel to New York in 15th spot, two places above the Millers.

Alex Bruce was a coach at Salford before stepping into the boss’s job at Rotherham in June.

One to watch

Macaulay Langstaff was a prolific scorer in the National League and League Two for Notts County, and that earned him a £700,000 move to Championship Millwall in 2024. He'd hit the back of the net 70 times in 91 league outings but didn't transfer that form to a higher division. Two seasons with the Lions brought only five goals in 71 second-tier outings and the 29-year-old striker made the switch to Salford this summer for around the same fee that Millwall had paid. He has yet to get off the mark in six appearances for his new club.

Form guide

Millers: LLDWDL

Salford: DLLLWW

The Ammies made a poor start to the season but have reversed their fortunes in the last two matches, following up a 2-1 home win over Newport County with a 1-0 victory on their own soil against Port Vale last Saturday.

Three matches between he clubs since 2020 have brought a Vertu Trophy victory and two Carabao Cup draws for the Millers. The cup ties went to penalty shoot-outs, with Rotherham losing one and winning one.

Past meetings

Dec 2 2025, Vertu Trophy: Salford 2 Millers 7

Josh Ayres, James Clarke, Josh Benson 3, Dan Gore, Dean Gardner

Aug 12 2025, Carabao Cup: Salford 0 Millers 0 (Millers win shoot-out 3-2)

Sep 5, 2020, Carabao Cup: Salford 1 Millers 1 (Salford win shoot-out 4-2)

Matt Crooks

Last clash

The highlight of a comprehensive 7-2 away triumph in the Vertu Trophy last December was a hat-trick by Josh Benson that included a strike scored from inside his own half. James Clarke, Dan Gore and Dean Gardner scored their first goals in senior football and Josh Ayres was also on the mark.

Opposition boss

Peter Cklamovski took the Salford hot-seat in June after the departure of Karl Robinson following a 3-0 loss to Notts County in the League Two Play-off Final. The 47-year-old Australian spent 18 months as head coach of Malaysia national team prior to moving to England. He reached the 2014 World Cup Finals with Australia as an assistant coach under Ange Postecoglou and later had a successful spell coaching in Japan.

Man in the middle

Dean Whitestone is an experienced referee with more than 20 seasons of EFL action under his belt. He has risen as high as the Championship during his long career in which he has racked up more than 500 matches. The Northampton-born official's last taste of the Millers came at New York in October 2023 when the home side lost 2-1 to Bristol City in a second-tier clash. This term, he has shown 11 yellow cards and one red in four fixtures.

The odds

The bookmakers don't fancy Rotherham to win, offering a home triumph at 2/1 and an Ammies victory at 11/10. A draw is 12/5.