Will Vaulks talks to www.themillers.co.uk...
Midfielder Will Vaulks says he and his Millers’ teammates have put in the hard work over the summer to be ‘fit for purpose’ ahead of the 2017/18 Sky Bet League One campaign.
The former Falkirk man and his fellow squad members were promised a rigorous test during the summer months by boss Paul Warne, but the 23-year-old insists the miles on the clock will be hugely beneficial for a number of reasons when the new season kicks off.
“It's been tough but enjoyable. We all knew what to expect with the Gaffer taking it because he's a fitness freak but I've enjoyed it and I've always been okay with fitness, but he's pushed us quite hard,” Vaulks told www.themillers.co.uk.
“There's no point being fit and just standing off the game and passing it around, we're fit so we can press teams for 90 minutes and have that quality as well, so when we win the ball back we're fit enough to keep it.
“I think that's what the Gaffer and Richie have drilled in, that we're not just fit for the sake of it. We're already fit and we're hopefully going to be the fittest in the league, but we're fit for a reason.”
Vaulks continued to admit that the commitment required over the summer was made clear to them before the players departed following the final game of last season and the opportunity to combine that work with some bonding with the squad has been very useful.
“I'm glad that I did my off-season programme because it has been tough,” he continued.
“You know with the Gaffer that he's not going to lie. Some managers might say it's going to be tough and it won't be, but we knew when he was saying it was going to be hard, it was.
“I think going out to Austria was good for bonding because there wasn't a lot to do away from the training pitch, so we spend a lot of time with each other.”