PLAY-OFF expert Tommy Miller has called on his team-mates to hold their nerve in the race for one of the richest prizes in sport.With at least £30m up for grabs Town have stuttered in their play-off fight and Miller is desperate they don't bottle it now.

Derek Davis

By Derek Davis

PLAY-OFF expert Tommy Miller has called on his team-mates to hold their nerve in the race for one of the richest prizes in sport.

With at least £30m up for grabs Town have stuttered in their play-off fight and Miller is desperate they don't bottle it now.

With experience in promotion battles with Ipswich and Hartlepool, and to a far lesser degree Sunderland last year, Miller knows now is the time for people to grab the opportunity by the scruff of the neck and lead them to success - and it is not down to one player.

Miller said: “It needs 11 of us to do that. Everyone has to pull together and this is make or break time. Every team around us will be saying the game.

“We have to hold our nerve. We need to be strong characters. We have been up and around there all season it would be wrong.

“We have been near the top pretty much all season and to allow it to peter away at this stage would be very sad and major disappointing.

“We have five big games left, all our own cup finals and we need to win all of them starting against Cardiff.

“If we get the points against Cardiff everyone will be buoyant and we can go to the big game against Norwich on a high.”

Without going into specifics, Miller revealed that the players were so unhappy with their showing at Colchester they held a dressing room clear the air meeting.

Miller said: “A few strong words were said and it needed to be done. It was all done in the right spirit, with no falling out.

“There were no finger pointing. We spoke about the performance and how it was not good enough and not what we have come to expect.

“It was about everything but not aimed at anyone in particular.

“It is good to clear the air because it is no good keeping it inside and everyone feels better when it all comes out.

“We went back on the training ground and even though it was all taken on board, there are no bad feelings and we move on.”

A failure to score in the last two games has not helped although Miller believes the side are still capable of producing goals and wins.

He said: “We have had a lull in form at the wrong time but even so we should have won against QPR and there have been other games when we could have won.

“Performances have not been too bad before Colchester.

“We underachieved on Saturday although maybe on another day one of this chances might have gone in for us.

“The team is good enough although we have missed key players like Pablo and Jon Walters.

“A lot of our play goes through Pablo and without him players aren't getting into the game.

“That said we have players who can win is the game and we should not us that as an excuse.”

The 29-year-old readily admits he could do more to help the cause and would love to start getting in among the goals again.

In his second stint at Portman Road, his first was as a teenager when he got released, Miller banged in a more than respectable 37 goals in 139 appearances, whereas as this season he has managed just three in 30.

Miller said: “I'm overdue a goal. I was remembered for my goals here before and that has not happened.

“I have not had the same licence and with four forwards in the side I don't get as many opportunities but even so I should score more.”

derek.davis@eadt.co.uk