QPR v Rotherham United: Tom Eaves finally ready to make Millers bow

Now it is all about doing what he came for.

A pre-season calf injury has ensured that the former Hull City striker has endured a frustrating wait in his quest to make his mark at his new club.

Millers fans could get their first sight of the fit-again forward today, most likely from the bench.

Boss Paul Warne said: “He’s definitely up my street as a lad.

“He works really hard in training. It was a real disappointment when he got injured in Croatia. We need to get him fit. He backs himself, which is a great thing.

“I tried to sign him three times in the past and each time, he politely said he wanted to stay in the Championship. He will be a really good asset on and off the pitch.”

As for his character, Warne quipped: “He’s hilarious. I spoke to Grant McCann about him the other week. I told Grant that Eavesy had been excellent for us in the dressing room and Grant said that Hull will really miss that about him.

“He said that Tom will frustrate you at times as a player – as all players do – but that as a lad he’s hilarious. Grant is right – Eavesy is one funny kid.

“I’d joked with him in training the other day that, despite all the sun we’ve had, he looked a bit pale and I asked him if he was feeling ill.

“The next day, he said he’d thought about getting his missus to put loads of fake tan on him, so he could turn up for training with a bright orange face, but that he hadn’t been sure how I’d have taken it.

“I told him I’d have wet myself laughing.”

Rotherham make the trip south on the back of a hard-earned point at Preston in their first away league game of 2022-23.

It was a tick in the box for United, whose away form has been problematic for spells of Warne’s tenure in charge at this level.

Back in 2018-19, the Millers lost their opening six Championship fixtures on the road before putting up their first point and a steady haul of points on their travels this term would irrevocably boost their hopes of a craved-for survival.

It would also lighten the load and pressure in terms of picking up wins on home soil.

Warne commented: “I don’t feel like we’re carrying any demons. I’m like: ‘The Championship is what it is, let’s just try to win as many games as we can.’ It’s a different group to what we’ve had.

“With Pelts (Lee Peltier) and Hally (Grant Hall) and couple of others, we’ve just got a bit more experience of the level, a little bit more wool on our chest than we’ve had in previous seasons.

“We’ve still got a good mix of young players and pace. I was looking at Cohen Bramall’s stats and they are through the roof for high-speed running.

“We have a nice mix and I do think we’re going to pick up points away from home.

“It would have become an issue if we’d lost a few on the spin away from home from the start of the season, but possibly because we’ve already got a point, I haven’t given it any thought.”