Rotherham 2 Millwall 1: ‘Guilty’ duo step up to the plate

Collin kept them in it in the first half when he stuck out his left leg to divert Lee Gregory’s close-range attempt for a corner to deny the Lions a 2-0 lead.

Then Arnason headed a far-post 85th-minute winning goal from Ben Pringle’s inswinging corner from a move off the training ground.

It built the pressure on Millwall manager Ian Holloway as the fans called for his head before many of their 1,309 followers attempted unsuccessfully to attack Millers supporters at either side of their end of the New York Stadium.

One woman steward was reportedly injured by a brick that was thrown before further trouble outside resulted in coins being hurled at the glass-fronted reception area. It all followed continual unsavoury chants throughout the game in reference to Jimmy Savile and the Rotherham child-sex scandal.

But it failed to take the gloss off Rotherham’s victory which followed 5-0 and 3-0 defeats at Wolves and Watford respectively.

Following his second goal of the season, Arnason said: “We know Prings has got great delivery and it was just a matter of getting on the end of it. You have to gamble and I got a bit lucky there.

“The win was so important. Adam kept us in the game and both of us had had a questionable game against Watford, but he kept us in it in the first half and then I scored the goal so we are both delighted.”

The centre-back continued: “We have always had the belief in the group that we can turn things around. Obviously we have put the pressure back on Millwall.

“This was a six-pointer and if Millwall had won then we would have been right in it. The win gives us a breathing space, but it is nowhere near being over.”

Having gone behind to Martyn Woolford’s toe-poke volley, Arnason said: “We knew at half-time we could have done better. It was a sloppy goal because he handled it first and had a bit of luck. But we all believed and no one hung their heads because we knew we just had to do a bit better.”

Of the lessons learned from two recent away losses, he added: “I thought we went a bit too attacking in those tough games in February, to be honest. We thought we were a little bit better than we were instead of keep focusing on keeping a clean sheet and then perhaps nicking something.

“We have shown we can beat teams like Wolves, but we have got to go the right way about it. All the teams have the quality to hurt you and that’s what happened at Watford and especially Wolves.”

Arnason had a new partner in Kirk Broadfoot after captain Craig Morgan twisted a knee in training and he remarked: “Kirk is a very good player and has played at a very high level. But you need to play a few games together and I thought in the first half there were a few times when we were a bit off and gave that chance away where he (Gregory) got running towards Adam but Kirk had a very good game and we can build on that.”

Of his error at Watford, 
Arnason said: “I just had to forget Tuesday and that terrible mistake which changed the game when I slipped over. You just need to bounce back, put it behind you and forget about it. When I was a bit younger that would probably have stayed with me a bit longer. You have to put it behind you when you get off the bus but it was brilliant to get the winner and it makes up a bit for that slip.”

Manager Steve Evans had made two other changes from midweek with Conor Newton coming onto the right of midfield and Danny Ward given a starting role up front alongside Matt Derbyshire and Rob Milsom and Conor Sammon dropping to the bench.

The Millers began brightly, but it was Millwall who struck in the 20th minute. Left-back Dan Harding swung over a deep cross, Gary Taylor-Fletcher headed the ball back across the area and Woolford’s volley nestled inside Collin’s left-hand post with the Millers claiming handball.

The home side created several half-chances which Derbyshire went close to converting, but they could have gone 2-0 behind in the 37th minute when Taylor-Fletcher headed on down the middle, but Collin made a decisive save from Gregory.

The Millers soon equalised after the interval in almost a carbon copy of the opener, Pringle crossing deep, Derbyshire heading back and Ward driving the ball home with the aid of deflection past a stranded David Forde.

Millwall went close through a goalbound header from Woolford but Broadfoot diverted it clear and the central defender was left incensed when he looked to be tripped at a corner at the other end but no penalty was given.

Millwall also lost former Sheffield Wednesday loanee Taylor-Fletcher with blood cascading down his face from a cut he received in the first half and their attack never had the same incisive edge after that.

Loanee right-back Jack Hunt then reminded Holloway why he had paid £2m for his services when in charge of Crystal Palace by bursting past Dan Harding and arrowing a shot against the far post before Forde did well to tip over the rebound from Ward.

Rotherham were not to be denied, however, and Pringle swung over their 11th corner for an unmarked Arnason to head home the important winner.