No panic, insists Evans as Frecklington signs

Evans, back in the dug-out this afternoon with his six-match stadium ban having now been completed, has seen his side pick up just two wins in six outings in his touchline absence, falling to 13th in League Two – to the disgruntlement of many expectant supporters.

The Millers signed midfielder Lee Frecklington on a month-long loan deal from Peterborough United yesterday and the 27-year-old goes straight into the squad.

The Millers chief had read the riot act after last weekend’s 3-0 home loss to Southend, but despite a bad day at the office, he insists his side will come good.

He said: “Any manager who has a track record in promotion realises it is never won in the first ten games or twenty or thirty.

“You only need to look at the likes of Swindon, Crewe and Shrewsbury, who last year weren’t even in the hunt for promotion at this stage of the campaign.

“It doesn’t matter what you do in your first ten or 11 games, although it is an indicator of what to expect.

“I look at it as if we win our game in hand, we are a point outside of the play-offs.

“I see teams sitting two, three or four places above us in the table and probably three points in front of us talking about how they have have had a great start to the season, whereas ours has been patchy and inconsistent at best.

“The performances that haven’t been acceptable are the last 15 minutes against Rochdale and the Southend game.

“I would not decry points away at Barnet and York as they are good points, but you have to deal with your home form.”

While the Millers are struggling for consistency, Dean Holdsworth’s second-from-bottom Shots – whose line-up contains ex-Miller Guy Branston – are on the crest of a slump after six straight losses, but Evans isn’t reading anything into that type of form.

He added: “If you look at most of the games they have lost, they have been games they have very much been in. I think Donald Duck will get relegated at the bottom of League Two before Aldershot will!”