Why Rotherham United must keep calm and carry on - on the pitch and off it

Those wise sentiments, originally uttered by Rotherham United manager Jimmy McGuigan, appeared in the Millers' recent home programme against AFC Wimbledon, having made an impact upon present-day manager Paul Warne.

It was club stalwart and Millers life-president John Breckin - who played under the late McGuigan in the Seventies - who alerted Warne to the words of his old boss, with 'Breck' also a shrewd judge of footballing situations himself through his many years in the game, mostly with his hometown club.

As it stands, the Millers are well placed in second place in the League One table, but they have been forced to get the puncture kit out ahead of Saturday's game with lowly Southend United.

It is a fixture which should enthuse Rotherham after a run of one win in five matches. But appearances can sometimes be deceptive.

Aside from their trip to Coventry City on February 25, the club's recent run of games looked to be a benign one with appointments against the struggling quartet of AFC Wimbledon, Accrington, MK Dons and Rochdale.

A modest haul of five points from a possible 12 - with the win at Accrington only arriving courtesy of a dramatic late winner from Ben Wiles - will not represent the major disappointment for Warne.

But the poor performance of his side in front of a big away following at Spotland on Saturday most definitely will.

It was the first below-par display from the Millers in a fair while, with recent showings having deserved more in truth with the main bugbear being errant finishing.

The hope will be that constitutes a 'bad day at the office' and Warne has been around football long enough to know that they occur from time to time.

But now, of all times, is a time to hold collective nerve on and off the pitch, with reports of minor outbreaks of fighting breaking out among small pockets of a sizeable near 1,700 Millers' contingent at Rochdale and some abuse of players representing an unwelcome development.

It is a time for sticking together, ahead of a battle for promotion which has the potential to go right down to the wire. Some would go further and say expect to.

As it stands, just three points separate six teams from the second-placed Millers to Wycombe in eighth.

You can hardly get a fag paper between them.

Ultimately, it is probably matches against their rivals at the top end of the table that will decide the Millers fate.

Of their remaining fixtures, they still have to welcome Portsmouth and derby rivals Doncaster Rovers - who still have an outside chance of the top six. Not forgetting a potential winner-takes-all final-day showdown with Sunderland.

Trips to Fleetwood and Wycombe also assume plenty of importance.

On the pitch on Saturday, the first requirement is getting back to basics at the back - with the Millers without Michael Ihiekwe possibly for the next month with a knee injury, with Joe Mattock also being missed at Rochdale.

Further forward, Warne has some selection quandaries, with top-scorer Freddie Ladapo brought off after an hour last weekend, with Josh Koroma and Kyle Vassell entering the fray in the final thirty minutes.

But it is important that the bigger picture is looked at. Rotherham are still in a decidedly healthy place, with their defeat at Rochdale being their first in eight matches.

All told, Warne's side have lost just once in 14 league games and their league placing is one that everyone would have gladly taken before a ball was kicked in August.

You do not have it all your own way at this time of year. Just ask Sunderland and Portsmouth on Tuesday night. It is worth remembering that.