Player ratings and match stats from Rotherham United 2 Northampton Town 1
Millers writer Paul Davis’s verdict on events at AESSEAL New York Stadium last night when Matt Hamshaw’s won in League One for the first time in 12 attempts.
Millers (3-4-1-2)
Cameron Dawson: 6
Steady. Not always rock-solid in his handling, but he did enough.
Joe Rafferty: 7
Back to the usual Rafferty. Fiery and committed. Defended stoutly and used the ball well.
Zak Jules: 7
A strong presence at the side of the skipper. One of his better games.
Jamal Baptiste: 7
He's just a good player who does a lot of good things.
Marvin Kaleta: 4
Kept trying to run with the ball, kept losing it. Forgive him - he picked up an injury early on.
Kian Spence: 7
Not at his best, but a Spence just below his best is still better than most midfielders. An influence in possession and out of it.
Shaun McWilliams: 5
Anonymous in the first half against his former club. Picked up after the break.
Reece James: 6
A little bit off his game before he had to depart early with a rib issue.
Joe Powell: 8
Right on his game. Set up both goals with deadly set-pieces. More of the same, please.
Sam Nombe: 6
Never stopped running and probing. A brilliant effort, but things didn't quite go for him. Utterly spent at the end.
Harry Gray: 7
A first senior goal and more encouraging signs of the superb player he's going to be.
The subs
Ar'Jany Martha (for Kaleta 38): 6
Flitted in and out of things. Dangerous when he was in, a passenger when he was out.
Dan Gore (for Reece James H-T): 8
Little legs, big heart, huge talent. Changed the game. Welcome back, you've been missed.
Emmanuel Adegboyega (for Spence 73): 8
Usually, there's no mark for a player coming on after 70 minutes. Very happy to break with tradition in view of an instant impact and a debut goal.
Dru Yearwood (for McWilliams 86): NA
Brought on for a tiring player and helped the Millers see out the game.
Not used: Ted Cann, Lenny Agbaire, Dru Yearwood, Jack Holmes.
Northampton (4-2-3-1): Ross Fitzsimons 7; Jack Burroughs 6 (Kamarai Swyer 71), Jordan Willis 7 (Max Dyche 71), Jon Guthrie 8, Conor McCarthy 6; Dean Campbell 6, Terry Taylor 6; Elliott List 5 (Jack Vale 82), Sam Hoskins 5 (Michael Jacobs 82), Nesta Guinness-Walker 6; Tom Eaves 6 (Jake Evans 82). Subs not used: Lee Burge, Jack Perkins.
Goals: Gray 58, Adegboyega 84 (Rotherham); Eaves 26 (Northampton)
Referee: Alan Young (Bedfordshire)
Attendance: 7,228 (293)
Opposition view
“Two set-play goals let us down. At 1-0, we should have had a penalty at a critical time in the game. But to lose the game off two set-pieces is really poor.
“You can’t gift teams goals the way we are at the minute and we need to learn quickly.
“We deserved to be 1-0 up and we looked in control until we let them back into the game.
“It’s a really difficult one for me to take and I’m really disappointed.”
- Northampton boss Kevin Nolan
The stats
Possession: Millers 61 per cent, Northampton 39
Goal attempts: Millers 18, Northampton 10
On target: Millers 5, Northampton 4
Touches in opposition box: Millers 29, Northampton 11
Corners: Millers 13, Northampton 4
Fouls committed: Millers 13, Northampton 4
Final word
Had to win and did. A small step maybe. But a big one maybe, too.