Evans stays positive for promotion chase

ROTHERHAM UNITED’S recent form at the New York Stadium may be nothing to write home about – but manager Steve Evans is still looking at the bigger picture.

The Millers are currently in the midst of a severe bout of cracking under home pressure, having lost five of their last six League Two games on home turf, including back-to-back defeats to struggling duo Bristol Rovers and Barnet.

While Evans – whose side welcome Northampton Town this afternoon – says that disgruntled fans have every right to criticise his side’s efforts for the error-strewn performances against Rovers and the Bees, he feels performances as a whole at the New York Stadium have been acceptable.

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And he insists most sides, despite the Millers’ current position of ninth in the table, remain envious of the Millers’ placing, with Evans’s side having games in hand on their rivals and only out of the play-offs on goal difference.

He said: “If you lose five out of six, you would say it’s something we need to put right sooner rather than later. But we have also got the second most home wins in League Two.

People can paint it whatever way they like it, but as much as the stats say five losses out of six, which is not good, it remains that we have three games in hand on the second-placed team with a three-point deficit. I’d have taken that last summer.

“Not many teams other than Gillingham and Port Vale would swap positions with us. I spoke to the Burton manager last week and he said he would swap places with us and they are third.

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“But we have to improve. The lads are very entitled to be disappointed with the last few home matches and the performances were sub-standard.

“Yet over the piece, I don’t care where we get our points – home or away. Although if you have a preference, you would rather win in front of your home fans.

Rotherham’s League Two game at Bradford City has been re-arranged from February 23 to Tuesday, April 16 due to the Bantams’ participation in the Capital One Cup final.