Part two of the article.........................

FOOTBALL-finance leading light Kieran Maguire would love Rotherham United to safeguard their place in the Championship as a reward for being such a well-run club.

The chartered accountant and podcaster held up the 20th-placed Millers as an example for other teams to follow in competing in the second tier while refusing to put their future stability in jeopardy.

“Fingers crossed, they’re going to do it this season through a combination of their performances on the pitch and points deductions elsewhere,” Maguire said. “They stick to their guns and don’t pay over the odds. They are a club who are really ‘savvy’, in my opinion.”

In their latest annual accounts, running to the end of June last year, the Millers posted a loss of just £1.7 million as they headed back to the second tier with promotion from League One.

“The best thing I can say about Rotherham and their finances is that they’re spectacularly dull,” Maguire said. “I mean that entirely as a compliment. There are never any nasty surprises, which I can’t say about all the clubs in South Yorkshire. I’ll say no more than that!”

In addition to the £1.7m loss, other figures include:

- Turnover of £9.9m, down from £12.1m in the previous season in the Championship when Covid kept fans away from games. This backs up owner Tony Stewart’s famous revelation that being in the second tier with empty stadiums was financially more beneficial to the Millers than a season of full houses in League One.

- Central funding down from £7.9m to £3m.

- A wage bill for 164 staff, including players, of £5.8m, down from £7.3m the year before when the number of people was 163.

- £2.6m generated by season-ticket sales, gate receipts and prize money, compared to zero the year before.

- Sponsorship/advertising income up to £2.9m from £2.3m.

- Merchandise sales rising from £883,000 to £922,000.

- Broadcast fees of £95,000 received for televised games, down from £691,000 the previous year.

- An increase in miscellaneous income from £64,000 to £202,000, achieved mainly by UEFA funding for new floodlights for Women’s Euros matches held at AESSEAL New York.

- The sale of 6,256 season tickets and an average New York attendance of 9,337.

Maguire used a comparison with the club with whom Rotherham climbed out of League One last term, Wigan Athletic, to highlight the quality of the Millers operation.

Rotherham’s accounts were made public just a few of days before the Latics were deducted three points by the EFL on Monday for failing to meet their financial commitments to their players.

“Wigan got promoted last season and lost £7m, Rotherham got promoted and lost £1.7m,” he said. “And Rotherham are paying the wages every month. Which is the better-run club?”