Moore hopes ‘jaded’ Le Fondre will return refreshed at Millers

RONNIE MOORE believes Rotherham United will reap the benefits of resting Adam Le Fondre in Saturday’s crucial promotion showdown with rivals Bury.

The Millers’ 21-goal top scorer was a surprise omission from the side that lost 2-1 to Bradford City in controversial circumstances on Tuesday night.

It was the first game Le Fondre, who did not travel to Valley Parade, had missed since moving to Rotherham from Rochdale at the start of last season.

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Moore felt the 24-year-old, who in his two seasons at Spotland also appeared in 91 of Dale’s 93 league games, had looked jaded in recent weeks.

But the United manager insists Le Fondre will return in Saturday’s eagerly-awaited meeting with promotion rivals Bury at the Don Valley Stadium.

Moore said: “He had looked a little bit jaded in the last few games so I decided to rest him for the game.

“I decided to go to Bradford with a different strategy. As far as that went, it went well. We just didn’t get the breaks.

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“I just thought Adam needed a break. He understood the decision and, hopefully, he will be nice and fresh for the Bury game.

“Adam was fine. He played nearly 60 games last season and hasn’t missed one this season.

“That is a lot of games. (Wayne) Rooney has a rest and no one says too much about that. As manager, you have to make a decision that is right for the team.

“I felt Adam needed a break and then, hopefully, he can come out of the blocks all guns blazing.”

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Le Fondre’s surprise omission may have been the main talking point as Tuesday’s Yorkshire derby kicked off.

However, by the final whistle, there was little doubt what had become the main source of debate – Tom Adeyemi’s 91st-minute winner, which was given by the officials despite the ball appearing to bounce in front of the line and not behind after striking the underside of the crossbar.

Moore, who expects to extend the loan spells of Callum Kennedy and Liam Henderson until the end of the season, said: “Losing like that was cruel. I honestly thought the linesman had given offside when the flag went up.

“How can he possibly see from there that the ball is over the line? It was a massive decision. Maybe a big crowd got to the officials.

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“How we didn’t come away with a win is beyond me. We steam-rollered them.

“To have it snatched off us like that was hard to take. I asked three of their players afterwards if it was a goal and not one of them said it was.

“None of them even appealed for the goal. They all went for the rebound. It is like Roger Hunt (1966 World Cup final), he turned away after seeing the ball bounce down over the line.

“Every one of their lads made the forward run to try and get to the ball.”

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For opposite number Peter Jackson, Adeyemi’s 25-yard winner capped a memorable 10 days since stepping in as City’s interim manager.

The 49-year-old, who yesterday unveiled Colin Cooper as his new assistant, is now hoping Bradford can build on the win and help push further his claims to be the club’s next permanent manager.

He said: “I want to stay here and results like that can only help. This is only the start and, hopefully, the beginning of a long and successful stay at Bradford City.

“This is a fantastic club and the biggest in this division by far. A lot of responsibility comes with that and we have to cope with that.”

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Jackson, who takes Bradford to Morecambe this weekend, added: “I was a very proud manager (on Tuesday night).

“It was a fairytale evening and the winning goal capped off a wonderful week and a wonderful day for me.

“We created a lot of chances. Bradford City have probably been a bit negative this season but I asked the players to have a go and they did.

“On another night, Jake Speight could have scored five.”

The 44-year-old Cooper, who held a similar position at Middlesbrough under Gareth Southgate, was at Valley Parade on Tuesday night.

Cooper’s arrival allows David Wetherall, who had been assisting Jackson, to solely focus on his role as the club’s youth-team coach.