On-field bust-up between Rotherham United duo Jon Taylor and Jerry Yates

Jon Taylor and striker Yates came together in a first-half exchange on Saturday as the Millers' fight for Championship survival was set back by a 6-1 drubbing at Derby County.

Centre-forward Yates appeared to push Taylor as they blamed each other for a pass from the winger that didn't reach the striker.

"Tayls is a heart-on-his-sleeve kind of guy and he was frustrated," said Warne whose side remain third from bottom of the table with seven matches to go. "It rears up. It shows he cares."

The boss said the incident was indicative of events against Frank Lampard's play-off-chasing outfit as Rotherham, missing several key men, put in their worst performance of the season.

"It summed up a bad day at the office," he said. "The body language of my players wasn't what I wanted. You're entitled to go behind but you've got to stick together and go for it."

Jerry Yates

Warne's squad were going through a Monday-morning inquest into the heaviest Millers league defeat for 19 years before turning their attention to this Saturday's home clash with Nottingham Forest.

"What went wrong at Derby? It would be a much quicker answer to say what went right," Warne said.

"Derby were excellent. I knew they'd start well and I thought we started well too. Willo (Ryan Williams) had a good chance that he should have put in. Then they won a penalty, got their tails up and it settled the crowd a little bit."

"I'd just like to write this day off as a bad one and get home. We've got seven cup finals left. We've had defeats before. We just have to bounce back.

Sickness had hit the Rotherham squad, forcing out striker Michael Smith and leaving several other players feeling under the weather.

Centre-half Clark Robertson's hamstring injury and suspensions for Will Vaulks and Joe Mattock also reduced the Millers' numbers.

"Zak Vyner (right-back) played but he shouldn't have," Warne said. "He wasn't well enough to play but we had no other full-backs.

"I've got Will Vaulks, who has been monumental for us, out, I've got Joe out, Michael Smith out, Clark Robertson out. But that doesn't take away from how disappointed I am at how we were."

Vaulks, Mattock, Smith and Robertson are all expected to return against Forest.