Paul Warne urges Rotherham to attack Scunthorpe in play-off clash

Posted Friday, May 11, 2018 by PA

Rotherham boss Paul Warne has vowed to attack as his side try and plot Sky Bet League One play-off glory.

The Millers head to Scunthorpe for the first leg of their semi-final on Saturday lunchtime, with an instant return to the Championship just three games away.

Only automatic promotion winners Wigan and Blackburn scored more than Warne’s men during the regular season as they hit 73 goals and the boss is not going to relinquish that attacking mindset now.

“We’re trying to make sure the lads play like they’ve always played this season,” he said.

“I want them to smile, to enjoy the occasion. I’m not setting up defensively, I’m not setting up to hold on for a 0-0. That’s just not in us. We don’t draw many games.

“Our job as a coaching staff has been to keep the lads relaxed but highly motivated and to encourage them to play their natural game.”

The Millers, who took six points off the Iron in their previous games this season, are at full strength, with Joe Newell fully fit after a groin injury.

Nick Daws, a former team-mate of Warne’s at Rotherham, is relishing the opportunity of leading Scunthorpe into the play-offs.

Daws, who has no fresh injury concerns, is in caretaker control of the Iron after taking the reins following Graham Alexander’s sacking.

He steadied the ship, delivering a top-six finish with four wins and three draws from his seven games at the helm, and that has given him a taste for the job.

“I am thriving in the environment and am really looking forward to the game,” he told BBC Radio Humberside. “It can’t come round quick enough.

“The job immerses you, there is such a great amount of things to do while I am here, when you’re at home the phone never stops ringing.

“But I love the fact I am constantly engaged, constantly thinking about things, constantly having challenges. That is why sleeping has been pretty easy.

“I enjoy this so much more, I am doing what I want to do. For 20 years I have been working towards making myself better.

“I am really pleased and really honoured to be given the opportunity to do this, it is exactly where I need to be. It is an incredible job so long as you want to do it.”