Why Denzel Hall was a missing man for Rotherham United in midweek
ROTHERHAM United played safe with the fitness of Denzel Hall by leaving him out of the squad for this week's pre-season encounter at non-league Emley.
The full-back featured in the opening summer friendly against Parkgate last Friday but was missing on Tuesday night at the Fantastic Media Welfare Ground in West Yorkshire because of a minor niggle.
“Denzel has got a tight hamstring,” said head coach Alex Bruce. “It's nothing serious, but we don't want to risk it.”
The 25-year-old is being monitored ahead of the third pre-season-fixture, at Northern Premier League East Division Matlock Town on Saturday.
Dutchman Hall impressed in his first season with the Millers when they were in League One last term when and Championship side Preston North End were lining up a seven-figure bid until he tore his hamstring early in the January transfer window and spent three months on the sidelines.
Teenage centre-half Harrison Duncan, who is expected to sign his first pro deal, has been absent from both matches so far as he recovers from a similar condition to Hall's.
“He's back on the grass, so he should be with us and back into full training in the next couple of days,” said Bruce after the 1-1 draw with Emley. “He won't play this weekend. He might be ready in the next week to 10 days.”
Another full-back, Joe Rafferty, was named on the team sheet on Tuesday but was withdrawn before kick-off with a tight groin and he, too, is being assessed by medical staff.
Rotherham are low on numbers and are seeking to add to their four summer signings as quickly as possible.
The men already in place have been made to sweat in the first three weeks of pre-season and that will continue, with Bruce focusing on conditioning rather than football and playing systems.
“We're still working fully on fitness,” he said. “I've kind of separated the pre-season into two. The first block will be majority fitness. Hopefully, that will give us the time to get in the bodies that we need.
“Then in the second part of pre-season, once we've got the numbers that we need, we can start introducing how we're going to play and tactics. Obviously, the personnel we bring in will structure that as well.”