Millwall defender evaluates season after final day defeat at Burnley

Millwall right-back Ryan Leonard expressed pride in both his teammates and the club’s fans after their hopes of securing a Championship play-off spot were dashed on the final day of the season.

The Lions fell to a 3-1 defeat away at Premier League-bound Burnley, knowing only a win, along with favourable results elsewhere, would be enough to keep their play-off dream alive. Despite the disappointment, Leonard remained upbeat about the team’s overall performance across the campaign.

“I think it’s a season we can be very proud of,” said the former Southend man. “Obviously, we just missed out on the last day, but I think it’s a credit to the lads and to the football club for getting this far. 

“To take it to the last game of the season against a top-quality side — listen, they got 100 points, they got it for a reason. It was always going to be a big ask, but we were well in the game for 92 minutes. Everyone at the club can be extremely proud.”

Leonard revealed that head coach Alex Neil, who took charge midway through the season, delivered a positive message to the players in the dressing room following the final whistle.

“The gaffer said after the game that we can be proud — and that it’s a building block going into next year. He’s only been in for a few months, so if we can have a good summer and a really good pre-season, that’s a few more months working under him. Hopefully next year we can push on even further. That’s the aim of the football club, and that’s what we want to do.”

While Burnley missed out on the title due to a late Leeds United winner at Plymouth, the Clarets still celebrated their automatic promotion at Turf Moor — scenes Leonard said his teammates can draw motivation from.

“It’s something we can strive towards. It’s important to respect what Burnley have done this year — 100 points is an incredible achievement. But it’s also good to be a little bit jealous, to look at what they’ve achieved and say, ‘Right, we want that.’ Hopefully we can build on this season and push for that next year.”

Millwall are hoping to challenge again for the play-offs next season, with Leonard pointing to the strong balance in the squad as a reason for optimism.

“We’ve got a really good group of senior players and a really good group of young players — it’s a strong, positive mix. Now it’s about enjoying the summer, having a bit of a rest, and coming back ready in June for pre-season. 

“We’ll be better for what we’ve experienced. Obviously, we’re all hurting right now, but when we look at the season as a whole, there are a lot of positives. We know we can improve on some things, and we’ll go again.”

Analysing the Burnley match itself, Leonard highlighted his side’s determination.

“We’ve got real togetherness. We left everything out there. Even when we were 2-1 down with one minute to go, we didn’t stop believing, didn’t stop trying to get that goal. Full credit to Burnley — 100 points is some going. It was always going to be a tough ask, but we took the lead. If we’d held on a bit longer, who knows? 

“But we didn’t miss out on the play-offs just today. It’s a 46-game season. To take it this far against a team like that is a huge achievement and something we’ll look back on with pride.”

PICTURE: KEITH GILLARD