Bowyer looking forward to Rotherham reunion

The Seasiders return to league action tomorrow, having reached the last 16 of the Checkatrade Trophy with a penalty shootout win against Mansfield Town on Wednesday.

Their opponents Rotherham United are a side that Bowyer spent two years playing for from 1995 to 1997 before being forced to cut his career short due to injury.

The current side are currently 13th in League One, one position below Bowyer’s men.

The Pool boss said: “We won the Auto Windscreen Shield there many years ago, so I have some good memories.

“I had two enjoyable years there. The second year I didn’t play enough due to injury and I had to retire at the end of that season, so that was disappointing.

“But at the time there was a great set of lads there, Paul Hurst being one of them, who is now the Shrewsbury manager, so I’ll catch up with him next week. But it will be a good game for us.”

Rotherham have lost their last three league games on the spin and are without a win since October.

Despite that, they remain one of the favourites for promotion, having been relegated from the Championship last season, and Bowyer is fully expecting a tough challenge come Saturday afternoon.

He added: “Our focus is back onto the league now with this game against a Rotherham side who have spent a lot of money during the summer.

“They’re rightly considered to be one of the favourites to bounce back to the Championship, having been relegated last season.

“You only have to look at the size of the squads and the finances of the three that came down to see what we’re competing with.

“It’s what you put out on the pitch that matters and it’s 11 v 11, so we’ll have a good go at them. That’s been the message for us all season.

“We’re aware of the challenge but it’s one we’re looking forward to. We’ve got some bodies back and we’re excited going into the game.”