Rotherham United chairman apologises to fans for sorry campaign in Championship

That is the message from Rotherham United chairman Tony Stewart on behalf of the club to supporters following the Millers’ disastrous Championship campaign.


Relegation to the third tier, which has been on the cards for a number of weeks, will finally be confirmed early next month, with the Millers chief having started planning for next season.



Stewart will speak with a handful of candidates, including interim boss Paul Warne, before making a decision on the club’s permanent manager next season, with an appointment to be made after the home derby with Sheffield Wednesday on April 4.



But for the time being, Stewart is drawing a line under a desperate season which has seen the club lose 29 of their 38 league matches so far and win just four times by issuing an apology.



On a torrid season for the Millers, who have lost their last seven league matches, Stewart said: “We apologise for the season that has gone and for not giving the performances that we should have done.



“As a board, we take full responsibility for the shocks that have happened. It certainly wasn’t part of the plan to get into the Championship and then go back down to League One.



“The remit of the board and I is to put the smiles back on the faces of fans. We want to give them the encouragement they deserve. Now we need to look forward.



“Have we lost our ambition? No, we haven’t. We will now prepare like we have never prepared before to ensure we have a team that gives the excitement that took us from the dark days of moving out of Rotherham (to Don Valley Stadium for four years) to the bright days of moving into New York and getting into the Championship.”



On the timescale towards appointing a permanent manager, he added: “We are looking to make a decision with regard to the way forward.



“We will be having meetings this week. I do think we will be announcing things to the fans after the Sheffield Wednesday game.”



Meanwhile, the Owls have sold out their allocation for the derby at the AESSEAL New York Stadium, with League Two title-chasers Doncaster Rovers having also sold all of their tickets for Saturday’s encounter at Grimsby Town on April 1.



It is Rovers’ first league visit to Blundell Park to face the Mariners since March 1990.