Word perfect as Steve Evans instantly lifts the mood ... David Rawson's Rotherham United fan column

This time two weeks ago, the prospect of the season’s finishing was almost a relief. Almost an end in itself. Whatever comes next, it couldn’t be worse than this. (Although, of course, you could tell the story of how, in fact, it could get much, much worse, given how far short this squad has fallen of the level required).

Now, the relief is still there, but also impatience to see what comes next. Some enthusiasm has come back.

This is perhaps Steve Evans' greatest talent. I’ve no idea what he’s like day to day when managing players, but surely no-one manages a club with more skill.

His interviews don’t just tell you what you want to hear, but manage to replay terrace opinion as official strategy. He couldn’t believe that Kioso was let out on loan. The contain and stifle style, while “workmanlike”, doesn’t yield “a Rotherham United performance”. The relentless criticism of the club’s infrastructure? Dismissed in half a sentence.

And somehow, an away performance that was as lacking in quality and threat as, well, almost every other away performance this calendar year feels slightly less hard to take. The tiny hints of sunlight above the clouds - the two smart saves from Bristol City's keeper in quick succession, Bramall’s late drive down the wing and clipped cross - stick in the mind. Alongside the latest rancidly incompetent refereeing blunder. Little things, but they engage the emotions. And that’s been missing for so much of this season.But if the vibes are better, the job to be done this summer is still huge.

Realistically, how many of this squad (goalkeeper excepted) would be coveted by a team at the top of League One this year? Any of them? Kioso because he did well at Peterborough? Rathbone for his past performances in the third division? Humphreys for his Man City pedigree? Evans reckons that we’ve about 25 per cent of what we need to be competitive in the division we’re heading into. I think that’s a generous assessment.

Oddly, that’s where the enthusiasm for what’s coming stems from. Evans curates his own career with care. He chooses jobs where the odds are stacked in his favour. Jobs where foundations are in place, or jobs where only improvement is possible. He channels the sentimental when he speaks, but his thinking is never less than shrewd.

I suspect no more than three of the team that plays the last game of this season will start the first game of next. Bring it on.