The Richard Wood column: Gaffer and Campy deserve Millers March recognition

The unbeaten run continued for the Millers at the weekend with another excellent performance from everyone involved. Credit must also go to the 344 travelling fans too because it's a fair old journey down to Ipswich. It seemed to take forever on our bus journey down on Friday.
Richard WoodRichard Wood
Richard Wood

The nominations for Manager of the Month for March are due soon. I’d be shocked if Neil Warnock is not given the award as Rotherham have beaten some very good sides and we’ve remained unbeaten through March, with three wins and one draw.

I’m also hoping our players get credit for the great month we’ve had. I’d like Lee Camp to get some recognition for some outstanding displays. I believe he should be at least a contender for Championship Player of the Month. He’s kept three clean sheets from four, and in the game against Derby, when we conceded three, he was superb and made some excellent saves through the match.

Winning at IpswichWinning at Ipswich
Winning at Ipswich
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The international break means we have no game at the weekend. Some would argue that it’s come at a bad time because we’re on such a good run and momentum is with us. However, it does give the squad a chance to recover from the tough run of games we’ve just had and prepare for the remaining eight matches. Everybody will be champing at the bit come April 2 against Leeds as we look to continue our rich vein of form.

I’ll be watching England over the weekend and it’s going to be interesting to see how the team copes against Germany and then, three days later, versus Holland. England qualified for the Euros with a 100 per cent record and weren’t really tested. The match with Germany will certainly give the nation a good indication of what we can expect in the summer.

We have some quality young players in the squad and lots of attacking options, but the worrying thing is that we don’t have a settled side and you can’t predict the starting 11. We don’t have a spine and a settled core. There is plenty of debate surrounding the starting 11 for England’s first match in the Euros.

For the Germany match on Saturday, I would give Danny Drinkwater a chance. His Leicester form has been exceptional this season and if he plays well in the friendlies he’d make my starting 11 for the Euros.

Lee Camp in commanding form againLee Camp in commanding form again
Lee Camp in commanding form again
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I’d choose a 4-2-3-1 formation with two defensive midfielders in front of the back four. This gives stability and allows the four attacking players the freedom to express themselves and get at teams. We have numerous options with regards to forwards, and Roy Hodgson has a difficult job getting the right blend.

When it comes to June 11, fitness and injuries permitting, my team would be: Hart; Clyne, Smalling, Stones, Bertrand; Dier, Drinkwater; Alli, Rooney, Sterling; Kane.

I’m sure many people’s take on this will be different to mine but after the friendlies my selection could be altered as it’s a perfect time for players to impress and make the team.