Season over for Rotherham United's Ciaran McGuckin
ATTACKER Ciaran McGuckin has a big question mark hanging over his Rotherham future after suffering an injury that has ended his 2025/26 campaign.
The 21-year-old has returned to the Millers from an ill-fated loan spell at non-league Eastleigh and is due to undergo surgery today.
The Millers had been pondering bringing him back to AESSEAL New York Stadium next month and the setback robs him of any chance of pressing his claim to be part of manager Matt Hamshaw's plans.
“Ciaran's had a bad injury,” the boss confirmed to the Advertiser yesterday. “He's done his knee while he was at Eastleigh and he'll be out for the season.
“He's back up here doing his rehab and having treatment. He has an operation tomorrow.”
The former Northern Ireland youth international signed a new one-year deal in June and Rotherham have an option to extend it by a further 12 months.
However, he has failed to force his way into Hamshaw's first-team thinking and the likelihood is that he and the club will now part company next summer.
McGuckin was a highly-regarded prospect as he came through the Millers' youth ranks but has found senior football to come by under a succession of bosses since making his debut during the reign of Paul Warne in October 2021.
Matt Taylor, Leam Richardson, Steve Evans didn't offer a consistent spot in their matchday 18 to the youngster and the same has now happened on Hamshaw's watch.
The player has done well on previous loans outside of the EFL, at Scarborough Athletic and Yeovil Town, and was playing regularly and hitting the target for National League Eastleigh before misfortune struck.
League One Rotherham had been monitoring his progress at the Silverlake Stadium and had been considering recalling him in the new-year transfer window to add to their options up front.
“We were, obviously, following him really closely with an eye on potentially getting him back here in January," Hamshaw said. “All his data was coming back really good, and I know he was happy getting minutes under his belt. His injury was out of our control.”
In five seasons, McGuckin has made only one start and nine substitute appearances for the Millers in Championship and third-tier combat while further outings in the EFL Cup and EFL Trophy take his match tally to 14.
He hasn't scored a goal for them in that time.
This term, he played in five matches before heading to Eastleigh in early October.
Rotherham will be active in the 2026 summer window and it will be no surprise if the forward is released and left seeking a new club.