We will become stronger - Robbo
Last updated : 06 August 2008 By Bigrich.....
Speaking to todays Yorkshire Post, the gaffer is upbeat depsite the impending 15-20 points deduction which is expected later today.
"We might have points deducted but at least the lads know they will get paid. Nobody else can hurt us now, We could sit here and feel sorry for ourselves but we can't afford to do that. We have to come out fighting like Leeds did last season. It is not the players' fault but we now have to deal with what is thrown at us and then try to develop the club." Robins said.
Reflecting on last season's events, he continued: "It would have been so easy to walk away but it never crossed my mind to do so. It was draining and energy-sapping.
"Staff and players were not being paid, we were not able to prepare properly for games, and we were travelling over three hours to games. When you have been used to doing things properly in football, it detracts from what you are about.
"It was a tough time to live through for everyone involved with the club. We might not be talking Premiership salaries - the players do get a decent level of income - but they still live to their means and it affects them when they are not being paid.
"At times like that, you need an understanding partner or wife. That is important in any walk of life and, thankfully, mine has been different class!" he joked.
"There is no doubt in my mind that Tony (Stewart) will be a great chairman to work for," said Robins. "He has got ideas about where he wants this club to go and what he wants to achieve. He is a 'doer' and when he says he is going to do something he means it.
"Over time, he wants us to move back to a stadium in Rotherham - that includes having a core support to see us through - and my first task at this stage is to make sure we get the results to sustain our league position.
"We have to get our house in order - and I am not just talking about Rotherham United - that is a given as far as this club is concerned from now on. We have to get the balance right between what is needed on the pitch and the different income streams off the pitch.
"There have been a lot of meetings this summer and a lot of travelling about between our three bases - I had to go sit in the council chambers with the chairman and we have also found a couple of sites in Rotherham where we hope to be training inside the next 12 months.
"It is important that we have the scope to develop any training ground into an Academy or certainly a school of excellence. Once the club is on a stable footing, that is what we intend to do."
Of his own personal ambitions, Robbo was as honest as he could be and explained: "I want to manage as high as I can - but that is firmly in the future.
"I am not looking at other people's jobs, I have got enough on my plate here and I enjoy it. I care about this club, it gets under your skin, and I am proud of what our players have done in difficult times.
"Managing in the Premier League provides different challenges to Rotherham. There is more media spotlight, more supporters, and more scrutiny but, at the end of the day, it is the same pressures only on a different scale.
"I want to see this job through and be proud of what we achieved.
"We will pick up a few more bumps and bruises along the way but we will come out stronger for it," he concluded.
