SWEET DREAMS
Robertson sleeping easy after Rotherham’s rise to promotion
THERE was no nightmare run of form and a dream end to the season prevailed. How could there have been any other outcome when Rotherham United employ the services of The Sleep Geek?
Ex-Aberdeen defender Clark Robertson celebrated automatic promotion back to the Championship during lockdown when the League One regular season was terminated early by a vote by clubs.
He can rest easily at night through the remainder of the close season in the knowledge that he will be playing his football in the English second tier in August. Not that the 26-year-old has endured any issues with his sleeping at all.
Robertson bashfully admits he has a knack of snoozing through much of the noise generated by his young children of a night.
However, he cannot underplay the significance of the expert who cured several of his team-mates and manager Paul Warne of their sleeping ills on the way to Rotherham snaring second place.
James Wilson, a former academy player at the Millers, played a part in promotions of Sheffield United and Lincoln City in recent years. His involvement as sleep coach could otherwise have been treated less than seriously by a doubting or, even worse, mocking dressing room.
But his previous in the game and the fact Rotherham’s players trust their innovative head coach implicitly served to limit the sniggering up the back of the room as the plan was presented to them.
‘It’s certainly something different to have someone coming to a training ground to analyse everyone’s sleeping habits,’ said Robertson. ‘But a few boys really benefited from it, especially ones with kids, and I am sure he will continue to work with us this coming season back in the Championship.
‘Those small percentages add up to you gaining an edge for being in the best possible condition to play — whether it’s sleep, diet or the gym work.’
Wilson identified a host of areas for improvement after one-on-one studies of the sleep patterns, positions and personal circumstances of individual players. The best pillows and mattresses to suit those needs were sourced. A range of tweaks to the night-time regime were advised and novel hacks revealed.
Would loan players or those staying away from their home to play for Rotherham benefit from using the washing powder they were accustomed to in the family house? Is your posture and traditional sleeping position causing intermittent fitness problems or injuries?
In boss
Warne’s case, this was proved to be negatively impacting on his painful lower back issues.
‘We were spoken to in a lot of depth about the importance of sleep and how to get the best regime and conditions,’ explained Robertson. ‘There’s making sure your body temperature is low, not being on your phone before going to bed which can have a bad effect on your sleep.
‘Dealing with sleep after night games is an important issue for footballers because a lot of boys
don’t go to bed until three in the morning with their heads still buzzing from the match.
‘It’s hard to catch up after that. The sleep coach helped with that and his work has really benefited many of the boys.
‘I have to be honest, I am a really deep sleeper anyway. My missus gets annoyed at me because I can conveniently never hear the little one screaming in the middle of the night!’
There was no rude awakening for Rotherham from the season’s enforced hibernation when League One agreed to shut down 2019/20 for good. With nine games left, Rotherham were promoted with champions Coventry.
There was a stack of controversy in behind them where Wycombe leapt from outside the play-off places and into third on the pointsper-game rationale of the calculations, shunting out Peterborough.
For Robertson, the return to action will feel longer than most because his season ended on December 29.
The centre-half played through groin pain from September before succumbing to the inevitability of an operation.
Three weeks into his rehab, he suffered the freak injury of a stress fracture of his foot while running around the training pitch.
‘It was bizarre because the ground was soft and there was no obvious impact on my foot to cause it, but that’s what the scan showed and it ruled me out the rest of the season,’ said Robertson.
Since leaving Aberdeen in 2015, Robertson has experienced both a relegation and a promotion with each of his two employers — Blackpool and Rotherham.
His second taste of the Championship, he hopes, will provide a platform to impress Scotland manager Steve Clarke.
‘I can’t wait to get back in the Championship, it’s such an exciting league with so many big clubs and I want to test myself there again,’ said Robertson, who was capped at Under-19s and 21s level.
‘I have ambitions about getting back in the Scotland set-up. Last time I played in the Championship, my agent said Alex McLeish came and watched one of my games.
‘That didn’t come to anything but to get into the Scotland squad you have to be playing at a good level and the Championship is a high level.’