FORGET Fergie junior or Paul Ince for that matter.
There's only one deserving winner of the League Two manager-of-the-year award and that's Mark Robins, according to Rotherham skipper Graham Coughlan.
The managerial rookie has endured the ultimate baptism of fire in his first full season in the ho
t seat.
A boom-and-bust campaign which saw the club spectacularly freefall from serious promotion contenders to being out of the play-off picture by virtue of a cruel 10-point deduction would have tested the patience of a saint.
Robins was left to pick up the pieces after the Millers bounced into administration, with the very existence of the club on a knife-edge.
Throw in wage deferral for the players and coaching staff for good measure and you can quickly grasp the thankless task that Robins has dealt with.
But the young manager has coped admirably with that and more in the view of Coughlan.
He said: "You have to feel sorry for Mark. It's his first job in football management and what he achieved for two-thirds of the season here was different class.
"He might not be handed the manager-of-the-year award, but I certainly believe he's done a far better job than the likes of (Darren) Ferguson and Ince in this division.
"I'm not sure too many other managers would have been able to handle it in the way he has.
"All credit to the manager. He's done brilliantly, especially in the way he's brought such a large number of young players through the ranks.
"The young lads have been different class. It's been a difficult time but, to be honest, I have looked up to them at times!
"They've shown maturity beyond their years and Mark has played a big part in their development at the club."
The full article contains 314 words and appears in Yorkshire Sport newspaper.
