Saturday’s trip to the New York Stadium is one eagerly anticipated by Will Vaulks.
The combative midfielder has experience of this fixture during his time with Rotherham.
The 30-year-old spent three years with the Millers between 2016 and 2019 and knows exactly what is required when these two sides meet.
“In my eyes it’s a local derby and they are always more feisty,” he said during Thursday morning’s pre-match media briefing.
The midfield man has been in good form for the Owls and has played his part in our excellent run of recent form.
Three wins from four games has kept us well in the fight for survival and Vaulks said:
“We have got an exciting end to the season coming, we want to push on.
“We’ve never given up on anything. The start was not good, but along the way we’ve had surges of belief.
“The manager has kept it steady and has a calm head. He says we don’t need to look at other results - there are 12 games still go and if we carry on as we are we’ll be ok.”
It will be Vaulks’ first game back at Rotherham since fans were permitted to attend fixtures after the pandemic.
On the fixture he continued; “I’m looking forward to it, I’ve not been back since fans have been in.
“I’ve played for Rotherham so I know what this game means to them.
“This is a big game for us because of the situation we are in and we have to embrace that as players.
“We need to pick up points no matter who we are playing, this game might mean a bit more to the fans because of bragging rights and everything else but the points are what matters.
“We’re in a position where we need to win games and they have got nothing to lose in a sense so we have to make sure we have an edge.
“I relish these opportunities and I’m really looking forward to going back and hopefully we get the win we need.”
