Bring Me the Horizon star and die hard Miller pines for Rotherham United matches when on tour

Grammy-nominated globe-trotting rock star Mat Nicholls feels right at home in New York - the stadium, not the city.
Bring Me the Horizon star Mat Nicholls with Rotherham United players and staffBring Me the Horizon star Mat Nicholls with Rotherham United players and staff
Bring Me the Horizon star Mat Nicholls with Rotherham United players and staff

The Rotherham United season ticket holder, who plays drums for Bring Me the Horizon, has forged a friendship with Millers boss Paul Warne.

Warne recently attended one of Nicholls' gigs, at First Direct Arena in Leeds.

Mat Nicholls with members of Rotherham United staff and playersMat Nicholls with members of Rotherham United staff and players
Mat Nicholls with members of Rotherham United staff and players
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Nicholls then paid a visit to training to meet Warne's players and staff.

Heavy metal and football aren't the most natural of bedfellows, but Nicholls doesn't mind the two worlds colliding one bit. 

"It's cool," he said. "I enjoy it because football is a world I pay a lot of attention to, Rotherham United is something I'm quite passionate about.

"It's cool when people like that are into what you're into.

"I always used to think I wonder what they think of this.

"(Warne) is a reyt nice bloke, he texts me a lot to be fair, we talk quite often on text.

"I love what he's doing at Rotherham United."

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Some celebrity supporters of Football League clubs would struggle to name more than a handful of first team players. 

Not so Nicholls.

The Maltby-born drummer is a die hard Miller.

He's felt keenly the various highs and lows the Championship club have gone through in recent years, and matchdays are something he pines for when he's off touring the arenas of the world.

"It's been very good to be a Rotherham fan. 

"We've had our downs as well, but we've been to Wembley three times in the last 12 years or whatever, there's been promotions, relegations, a new stadium.

"I'm enjoying it, it's always eventful being a Rotherham United fan.

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"When I'm on tour and I miss games, I hate following games on Twitter, I'd rather be there."

Fame - the video for recent single MANTRA has 13 million views on YouTube, the band's Twitter account has 1.89m followers - doesn't hinder his ability to enjoy games at the New York Stadium.

He has been approached by fellow fans in the past, but at the end of the day they're in the ground because they're Millers, just like him.

"I get it now and then, it's very rare when I do.

"I get to know the people I'm sat with, they all know I'm in the band and they talk to me, but everyone is just down to earth and chilled, everyone gets on.

"I've been asked for photos once or twice but it's nothing mental.

"I'm there for the same reasons they're there, we're all Rotherham United fans."