Clarke-Harris feels life is looking up for Rotherham under Redfearn

by Paddy von Behr

THERE is a case to argue that no-one has capitalised quite so much on Neil Redfearn’s arrival at Rotherham as Jonson Clarke-Harris.

The 21-year-old led the way as the Millers brushed aside Bristol City last weekend, netting twice to move his side to within one point of safety.

It hasn’t always been so smooth, however, for Clarke-Harris, who arrived at the New York Stadium from Oldham in September 2014 as Rotherham’s club record signing.

A couple of loan moves followed, with the forward featuring for MK Dons and Doncaster before his first season in Yorkshire came to an end.

And a promising start to this campaign was overshadowed by the club’s struggles.

But, since Steve Evans was given his marching orders and Redfearn took the reins in October, something has clicked.

“Of course, it has been tricky,” said Clarke-Harris.

“I thought I did well when I first came to Rotherham, but it is a big step up from League One to the Championship.

“I put a lot of pressure on myself thinking ‘Am I good enough for this league?’ and, when Steve Evans sent me out on loan, I thought ‘obviously I’m not’ but I have turned it around now.

“I hadn’t scored for a while, so I put a bit of pressure on myself, thinking I was not scoring and I was going to get dropped – but on Saturday I let that go.

“I always expect the best from myself and so does everyone around me.

“It’s a learning curve I’m in right now and it is about knowing how to control that.”

Clarke-Harris insists the price tag he carried to Rotherham – thought to be around £350,000 – brought no noticeable pressure.

Indeed, he is used to high expectations, having become Coventry‘s youngest ever player back in 2010 when he came off the bench for a senior debut aged 16 years and 20 days.

Impressing a new boss, however, was an unfamiliar experience, and the left-footed forward was relieved to discover Redfearn is exactly the kind of leader he was hoping for.

“It was the first time for me and I found it difficult because you don’t know the manager and you don’t know if he likes you,” he said.

“I thought I would just do exactly what I have been doing for the past couple of weeks and it has worked. I trained the same and played the same – and it all just fell into place.

Man of letters: Tony Andreu is handed a note by Neil Redfearn (Photo by Action Images / Craig Brough)

“The manager wants to help me every day and I can actually walk in with a smile on my face.

“You can put football aside and you can have a normal chat with him. You can talk about your home life and he is really easy to talk to.

“Sometimes he puts an arm around you and sometimes he gives you a bit of a rollicking and I feel like I need both.”

Attentions now turn towards firing Rotherham up the table and Redfearn has called up the cavalry, with the addition of Leon Best, Stephen Kelly and Luke Hyam last month.

Best, a free agent since leaving Blackburn last summer, made an inauspicious start on debut, seeing red at Leeds two weeks ago, but Clarke-Harris is eager to link up with the former Coventry striker when his suspension is up.

“He has been at the top level and he is somebody I can learn off every day,” he added.

“I have a close connection with him already.

“I have asked about the early stages of his career, how he went about it, and he’s told me.

“It is competition at the end of the day and everybody is fighting for places, but we have a good friendship. We are close and we understand each other a lot. It works well.

“For him, it is about staying fit. He didn’t do a pre-season but he looks sharp and ready.”