Rotherham United F.C.
Full name | Rotherham United Football Club | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Nickname(s) | The Millers | |||
Founded | 27 May 1925 | |||
Ground | New York Stadium | |||
Capacity | 12,021 | |||
Chairman | Tony Stewart | |||
Manager | Steve Evans | |||
League | EFL Championship | |||
2022–23 | EFL Championship, 19th of 24 | |||
Website | Club website | |||
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Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers,[1] is a professional association football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system, but will play in EFL League One in the 2024–25 season after suffering relegation. The club's colours were initially yellow and black, but changed to red and white around 1930.[2] They have played home matches at the New York Stadium since 2012, having briefly moved to the Don Valley Stadium from their original home at Millmoor in 2008.
The club was formed as a merger between
Under the stewardship of Ronnie Moore, Rotherham secured back-to-back promotions in 1999–2000 and 2000–01. They stayed in the second tier for four seasons, though were relegated twice in three years by 2007. The club again secured back-to-back promotions, this time under Steve Evans, securing automatic promotion from League Two in 2012–13 and promotion from League One via the play-offs in 2013–14. The club have moved between the Championship and League One for six successive seasons between 2016–17 and 2021–22, winning the play-offs in 2018 as well as the 2022 EFL Trophy final.
History
This article appears to be slanted towards recent events. (May 2018) |
The club's roots go back to 1877, when the club was formed as Thornhill Football Club (later Thornhill United).[3] George Cook was the trainer around this time. For many years the leading team in the area was Rotherham Town, who spent three seasons in the Football League while Thornhill United were still playing in the Sheffield & Hallamshire League. By the turn of the century, however, Town had resigned from the Football League and gone out of business; a new club of the same name later joined the Midland League.[3] Meanwhile, Thornhill's fortunes were on the rise to the extent that in 1905 they laid claim to being the pre-eminent club in the town and changed their name to Rotherham County. For a period both clubs competed in the Midland League, finishing first and second in 1911–12. Rotherham County became members of the second division of the Football league in 1919 whilst Rotherham Town failed to become elected to the third division northern section the following year. By 1925 County's fortunes had declined and they had to seek re-election to the third division. By this time it had become clear that to have two professional clubs in the town was not sustainable. Talks had begun in February 1925 and in early May the two clubs merged to form Rotherham United. Days later the reformed club was formally re-elected to the Football League under its new name.
The red and white kit was adopted around 1930 after playing in amber and black, but there was no improvement in the club's fortunes: in 1931 they again had to apply for re-election. Immediately after the Second World War things looked up. The Millers won the only post-war edition of the
During the 1990s Rotherham were promoted and relegated between the Football League's lowest two divisions and they slipped into the Fourth Division in 1991, just two years after being promoted, but reclaimed their status in the third tier (renamed Division Two for the
Rotherham managed to remain in Division One for four seasons, and after relegation to League One in 2005, Mick Harford took over as the Millers' manager, but was sacked after a run of 17 games without a win. Harford was replaced by youth team coach, Alan Knill. Early in 2006 it was announced that the club faced an uncertain future unless a funding gap in the region of £140,000 per month could be plugged. An intervention at the latest possible time by a consortium of local businessmen kept them in business.[6] The final match of the 2005–06 season, home to Milton Keynes Dons, was a winner-take-all relegation showdown where a scoreless draw kept Rotherham up. Rotherham United began their second successive year in League One with a 10-point deficit as a result of the CVA which saved the club from liquidation. The club initially pulled the points back but, after losing key playmaker Lee Williamson and star striker Will Hoskins in the January transfer window, the Millers sat 13 points adrift of safety, making the threat of relegation inevitable. This resulted in Knill being sacked on 1 March, with Mark Robins becoming caretaker manager.
Robins's position was made permanent on 6 April 2007,
Mark Robins kept the majority of the team together from the 2008–09 campaign, whilst bolstering his squad with high calibre signings in the form of
In the 2014–15 Championship season, Rotherham's first after a nine-year absence, their survival was jeopardised by a points deduction for fielding the ineligible
At the first attempt, Rotherham returned to the Championship, defeating Shrewsbury in the 2018 play-off final.[24] Rotherham were relegated from the Championship the following season on the penultimate game of the campaign.[25] The COVID-19 pandemic struck during the 2019–20 season and cut short Rotherham's ambitions of being promoted the 'old fashioned way'. Their final game before the March 2020 lockdown was a 3–1 loss away at Rochdale. The Millers were eventually promoted through points per game in 2nd place behind Coventry City. Their return to the Championship was one which fans watched from home due to the persistence of the pandemic. However, despite the best efforts of the Millers, Rotherham would be relegated. Rotherham took the season to the final day where a victory would see them survive if Sheffield Wednesday and Derby County drew with each other. The draw did indeed occur, but Rotherham suffered an 88th minute equaliser against Cardiff City, which was enough to keep Derby in the Championship and Rotherham to be relegated to League One for the 2021–22 season.[26] In the 2021–22 season, the Millers were promoted back to the Championship as runners-up, defeating Gillingham 2–0 on the final day of the season.[27] The club also won the 2021–22 EFL Trophy at Wembley Stadium after defeating Sutton United 4–2 after extra time.[28] Early in the 2022–23 season, manager Paul Warne departed for Derby County,[29] being replaced by Exeter City boss Matt Taylor.[30] At the end of the 2023–24 season, Rotherham were relegated back to League One.[31]
Kit and sponsorship
Since 2015, the naming rights to the stadium are currently owned by local multimillion-pound company AESSEAL.[32]
The club's principal sponsor is IPM Group and Asura which features on all the playing kits. The training wear has a separate sponsorship with Guardian Electrical appearing on all training and leisure wear. All kit is made by long term sponsor Puma which has worked with the club for over 10 years.[citation needed]
Stadium
The club's traditional home was Millmoor in Rotherham where the team played from 1907 to 2008. On one side of the ground is the site of the new Main Stand which remains unfinished. It was hoped that the 4,500 capacity stand which is single tiered, all seated and covered, would be completed sometime during the 2006–07 season, but this had not come to fruition by the time the ground became disused in 2008. On the other side of the ground is the Millmoor Lane Stand, which has a mixture of covered and open seating. Roughly each section on this side is about a third of the length of the pitch. The covered seating in the middle of this stand looks quite distinctive, with several supporting pillars and an arched roof. Both ends are former terraces, with several supporting pillars and have now been made all seated. The larger of the two is the Tivoli End, which was used by home fans. It was noticeable that the pitch slopes up towards this end. The ground also benefits from a striking set of floodlights, the pylons of which are some of the tallest in the country at approximately 124 feet high. Following the failure of the owners of the club and the owners of Millmoor to reach a lease agreement the club left for the Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield in 2008.[33]
Whilst a new purpose-built community stadium was being built in Rotherham, the club relocated to the Don Valley Stadium in nearby Sheffield for four seasons from 2008–09 to 2011–12.
In January 2010 the club announced that their new stadium, later named the
Supporters
In the TV series
Records and statistics
- Highest league finish: 3rd,
- Best FA Cup performance: Fifth round, 1967–68
- Record league victory: 8–0 v.
- Record cup victory: 6–0 v. Spennymoor United,[41] FA Cup second round, 17 December 1977, v. Wolverhampton Wanderers, FA Cup first round,[42] 16 November 1985, v. King's Lynn,[43] FA Cup second round, 6 December 1997
- Record defeat: 1–11 v. Bradford City, Division 3 North, 25 August 1928[44]
- Record home attendance at Millmoor: 25,170 v. Sheffield United, Football League Second Division, 13 December 1952
- Record home attendance at Don Valley Stadium: 7,082 v. Football League Two play-offs, 19 May 2010[45]
- Record home attendance at the New York Stadium: 11,758 v. Sheffield United, Football League One, 7 September 2013
- Most played opponents in league and cup matches: Bradford City (78), York City(78)
- Opponents with most victories against in league and cup matches: Rochdale (36), Chester City(35)
- Opponents with most defeats against in league and cup matches: Huddersfield Town(29)
- Opponents with most draws against in league and cup matches: Swansea City (25), Doncaster Rovers (22), Lincoln City (21), Walsall (21), Crewe Alexandra (20), York City(20)
- Record league points: 91, Division 2, 2000–01
- Record league goals: 114, Division 3 (N), 1946–47
- Record league goal-scorer: Gladstone Guest, 130 league goals, between 1946–1956
- Record cup goal-scorer: Alan Crawford, 18 goals, between 1974–1979
- Highest league scorer in a season: Wally Ardron, 38 goals, 1946/47
- Most goals in one match: Jack Shaw, 5 goals v. Darlington, FA Cup, 25 November 1950, won 7–2
- Most internationally capped player: Kári Árnason (36 caps for Iceland)
- Record appearances: Danny Williams, 461 league matches, 39 cup matches, 621 in total[46]
- Youngest player: Kevin Eley, 16 years 71 days, 15 May 1984
- Record transfer fee: £1,000,000 Exeter City[47]
- Record fee received: £1,600,000 from Cardiff City for Danny Ward[48]
- Record gate receipts: £106,182 v. Southampton, FA Cup third round, 16 January 2002
Players
First-team squad
- As of 1 February 2024[49]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Out on loan
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Club management
Coaching positions
- Manager: Steve Evans
- Assistant manager: Paul Raynor
- First team coach: Dan Green
- Goalkeeping coach: Scott Brown
- Senior performance coach: Brent Dickinson
- First team Physiotherapy: James Starmore
- Head of Talent ID: Rob Scott
- Lead Technical Scouts: Warren Spalding and Lewis Scott
- Academy Manager: Richard Hairyes
- Academy Head of Coaching: John Williams
- Development Phase Lead coach: Gavin Atherton
- Youth Phase Lead coach: Joe Skarz
- Foundation Phase Lead coach: Dave Atkinson
- Head of Academy Physiotherapy: Adrian Littlejohn
- Head of Academy Recruitment: Scott Duncanson
Managerial history
- As of 20 February 2024
Name | Nat | From | To | Record | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
P | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
Billy Heald | 1 August 1925 | 1 March 1929 | 165 | 55 | 38 | 72 | 33.33 | |
Stan Davies | 1 March 1929 | 31 May 1930 | 59 | 18 | 12 | 29 | 30.51 | |
Billy Heald | 1 August 1930 | 31 December 1933 | 150 | 49 | 27 | 74 | 32.67 | |
Reg Freeman | 1 January 1934 | 1 August 1952 | 523 | 252 | 97 | 174 | 48.18 | |
Andy Smailes | 1 August 1952 | 31 October 1958 | 278 | 109 | 50 | 119 | 39.21 | |
Tom Johnston | 1 December 1958 | 1 July 1962 | 174 | 63 | 47 | 64 | 36.21 | |
Danny Williams
|
1 July 1962 | 1 February 1965 | 125 | 53 | 21 | 51 | 42.40 | |
Jack Mansell | 1 August 1965 | 31 May 1967 | 96 | 34 | 27 | 35 | 35.42 | |
Tommy Docherty | 1 November 1967 | 30 November 1968 | 52 | 16 | 17 | 19 | 30.77 | |
Jim McAnearney | 1 December 1968 | 1 May 1973 | 240 | 92 | 66 | 82 | 38.33 | |
Jimmy McGuigan | 1 May 1973 | 13 November 1979 | 341 | 131 | 91 | 119 | 38.42 | |
Ian Porterfield | 30 December 1979 | 6 June 1981 | 71 | 32 | 21 | 18 | 45.07 | |
Emlyn Hughes | 1 July 1981 | 21 March 1983 | 84 | 31 | 21 | 32 | 36.90 | |
George Kerr | 21 March 1983 | 31 May 1985 | 124 | 44 | 30 | 50 | 35.48 | |
Norman Hunter | 18 June 1985 | 9 December 1987 | 137 | 43 | 41 | 53 | 31.39 | |
John Breckin | 9 December 1987 | 23 December 1987 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.00 | |
Dave Cusack | 23 December 1987 | 1 April 1988 | 17 | 5 | 8 | 4 | 29.41 | |
Billy McEwan | 1 April 1988 | 1 January 1991 | 147 | 54 | 42 | 51 | 36.73 | |
Phil Henson | 1 January 1991 | 14 September 1994 | 199 | 75 | 55 | 69 | 37.69 | |
John McGovern / Archie Gemmill | 14 September 1994 | 31 July 1996 | 104 | 36 | 31 | 37 | 34.62 | |
Danny Bergara | 1 August 1996 | 24 May 1997 | 50 | 7 | 14 | 29 | 14.00 | |
Ronnie Moore | 24 May 1997 | 31 January 2005 | 398 | 143 | 121 | 134 | 35.93 | |
Alan Knill (Caretaker) | 31 January 2005 | 7 April 2005 | 74 | 20 | 19 | 35 | 27.03 | |
Mick Harford | 7 April 2005 | 10 December 2005 | 26 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 19.23 | |
Alan Knill | 10 December 2005 | 1 March 2007 | 64 | 18 | 17 | 29 | 28.13 | |
Mark Robins | 1 March 2007 | 9 September 2009 | 129 | 56 | 30 | 43 | 43.41 | |
Steve Thornber (Caretaker) | 9 September 2009 | 26 September 2009 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 33.33 | |
Ronnie Moore | 26 September 2009 | 21 March 2011 | 87 | 36 | 21 | 30 | 41.38 | |
Andy Liddell (Caretaker) | 25 March 2011 | 15 April 2011 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 25.00 | |
Andy Scott | 16 April 2011 | 17 March 2012 | 46 | 15 | 14 | 17 | 32.61 | |
Darren Patterson (Caretaker) | 19 March 2012 | 11 April 2012 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 80.00 | |
Steve Evans | 9 April 2012 | 28 September 2015 | 173 | 72 | 45 | 56 | 41.62 | |
Eric Black (Caretaker) | 1 October 2015 | 9 October 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 | |
Neil Redfearn | 9 October 2015 | 8 February 2016 | 21 | 5 | 2 | 14 | 23.81 | |
Neil Warnock | 11 February 2016 | 18 May 2016 | 16 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 37.50 | |
Alan Stubbs | 1 June 2016 | 19 October 2016 | 14 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 7.14 | |
Paul Warne (Caretaker) | 19 October 2016 | 21 October 2016 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
Kenny Jackett | 21 October 2016 | 28 November 2016 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0.00 | |
Paul Warne | 28 November 2016 | 22 September 2022 | 176 | 63 | 37 | 76 | 35.80 | |
Richard Wood / Lee Peltier (Caretaker) | 22 September 2022 | 4 October 2022 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 | |
Matt Taylor | 4 October 2022 | 13 November 2023 | 55 | 10 | 18 | 27 | 18.18 | |
Wayne Carlisle (Caretaker) | 13 November 2023 | 11 December 2023 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0.00 | |
Leam Richardson | 11 December 2023 | 17 April 2024 | 24 | 2 | 4 | 18 | 8.33 | |
Steve Evans | 17 April 2024 | Present | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Board of directors and ownership
- Chairman: Tony Stewart[52]
- Vice-chairman: Richard Stewart
- Chief Executive: Paul Douglas
- Operations Director: Julie Hunt
- Commercial Director: Steve Coakley
- Financial Director: Karen Thomas
Honours
League
- Third Division North / Third Division / Second Division / League One (level 3)
- Fourth Division / Third Division / League Two (level 4)
Cup
- Football League Cup
- Runners-up: 1960–61
- Football League Trophy / EFL Trophy
- Football League Third Division North Cup
- Winners: 1945–46[53]
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- ^ "Rotherham 3–0 Burton". BBC News Online. BBC. 18 August 2012. Archived from the original on 20 August 2012. Retrieved 19 August 2012.
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External links
- Official website
- Rotherham United F.C. on BBC Sport: Club news – Recent results and fixtures