Rotherham United v Oxford United: Paul Warne the motivator keen to help his stuttering Milers over the automatic promotion line

His Rotherham United side are, without question, one of the fittest teams in the EFL. Warneprides himself upon that fact.

But towards the end of demanding seasons, minds can get weary. More especially when your side are suffering a worrying dip in results, which Warne’s side definitely are at the moment.

Making sure players are mentally fresh is much harder than physical conditioning at this stage of a campaign. That is the trick and the small details matter.

Prior to big late-season games in previous years – today’s match is the first of three huge fixtures to finish off the regular 2021-22 season for the Millers – Warne has been quirky in his methods.

A sing-a-long to George Michael’s song ‘Faith’ once took place before a key fixture late in a season. Video montages of messages from family members has also been used as motivation.

Then there’s more subtle methods, with Warne’s preparation for today’s crunch fixture starting after Tuesday’s loss at Burton.

Warne, whose second-placed side’s fate is still in their hands despite a run of four defeats in their past five league matches, said: “There are different ways that you can motivate your team. We have done a few different video things (this week) which may engage part of their (players) brain that they haven’t gone to for a bit.

“You encourage them in the group environment and team meetings and in the training sessions. More than that, you do the ‘sneaky’ ones (methods).

“You might talk to a player as he is walking out of the bootroom and tell him how great he is and how you really fancy him to score on Saturday. When you do it away from the group, it has more impetus with them.

“For example, I texted four players individually (in Wednesday) and had a chat with them to tell him how great they have been and how I am looking forward to watching them play and what else they can do. I keep trying to encourage them, although no-one has a magic wand.

“They are human and have pressure and bouts of form. We have just to make them keep believing in themselves.”

As for who motivates the motivator? Well, that must ultimately come from within.

Warne has a backroom staff who he counts as not just associates, but friends who help to pick him up in those low moments.

But the Millers chief is intelligent enough to know that he also has to lift himself up in those hours where he is fretting about his team’s form on a sleepless night or two and on his own.

He continued: “I listened to (Mikel) Arteta speak after they beat Chelsea in midweek and I felt what he said was really good.

“He said managing a team when it wins is easy – a piece of cake. Managing a group when they lose – and they (Arsenal) had lost three on the spin – he found to be not enjoyable, but different.

“I have to pick myself up. I’m the one who, unfairly, takes the plaudits when the team are doing well so if they are not doing well, then it is on me. I get that.

“It’s my job to pick the group up, manage people’s moods and be really positive with the group all the time. I’m blessed that I work with a really good set of staff.

“They don’t purposely pick me up by sitting me down and saying: ‘Look, gaffer, this is good and this good.’ They do pick me up, though, when I see them working hard with a smile on their face.”

For the umpteenth time in Warne’s long association with the Millers, a late-season home game has plenty riding on it today.

Although this one is a bit contrasting to marquee dates against the likes of Aldershot, Preston and Scunthorpe, when joyous home fans flooded onto the pitch at the final whistle – when automatic promotion or securing a Wembley date was celebrated.

Should the hosts prevail today, there will be momentary relief before steeling themselves to climb two more summits.

On yet another key fixture, Warne commented: “I was speaking to Rich (Barker) about it when we went for a walk the other day.

“I think in virtually every year since the chairman has been here, in nearly every home game at the end of the season – unless we were already down – we have played for something; promotion, to get into a play-offs or survival.

“There’s never any mid-table ‘flip-flop’ games. We don’t turn up with a passport in one hand and a donkey in the other!

“We’ve had some great last games here and pitch invasions, but we won’t this year as we won’t have achieved anything. Hopefully, if we win – and I suspect (nearest rivals) MK Dons will – it will take it to the last two games.”