Rotherham United urged to go and win ‘five cup finals’

The Millers, still in with a fair chance of survival despite being the overwhelming relegation favourites last summer, produced an outstanding first-half display to lead the promotion-chasers 1-0 at the interval on Wednesday night, inspiring hopes of a first home victory over the Midlands club since October 1961.

Ten-man Villa promptly displayed their promotion credentials to cast aside the dismissal of Tyrone Mings and end up 2-1 victors, leaving Warne with a bittersweet feeling at the final whistle.

Warne, whose third-from-bottom side now face back-to-back trips to Stoke and Swansea, said: “I told the players how proud I was of their performance.

“The first-half performance was excellent.

“Like I said to Woody (Richard Wood), if we had lost 2-1 at home to Aston Villa two years ago I might have left the stadium thinking, ‘well, the lads have given a good account of themselves and everyone is quite pleased’.

“Whereas two years on in the Championship we lose 2-1 and it feels like it is a missed opportunity. The lads are disappointed and that is how far we have come.”

The second half may have been a tough development for the hosts, but Warne is urging his side to focus on replicating their first-half showing in what he sees as five forthcoming ‘cup finals’.

He added: “It leaves us with five cup finals and this one was one of the hardest and it was so close, yet so far. But the lads can take a lot of credit from that.

“But it is very bitter-sweet for me.

“I was really pleased with the first-half performance and a point would have been a really good one with the way the other results went.”