Most managers would spend the summer brooding on a final-day collapse that cost their side a place in the Championship play-offs, but not Gary Rowett.
Needing to win at home to guarantee a top-six finish, Rowett's Millwall blew a 3-1 half-time lead over Blackburn to lose 4-3 and slip out of contention.
Rowett has endured a turbulent summer, since the death of Millwall owner John Berylson, but he has not spent the off-season dwelling on another disappointment on the pitch.
"After the Blackburn game, all I wanted to do was go on holiday, lie on a sunbed and drink as much wine as I possibly could," Rowett told Standard Sport ahead of tomorrow's season opener at Middlesbrough.
After the game, all I wanted to do was go on holiday, lie on a sunbed and drink as much wine as I could.
"It was such a tough way to end the season, to get that close and to lose it in the last 45 minutes.
"But I get over things quickly because the sooner I can get over it, the sooner I can work out what we need to do next season. So the next day, I'm on a sunbed, I've got my note pad out and I'm trying to work out what we need to do.
"There's a mixture of disappointment and reflection. But very quickly you end up in a position where you feel that motivation again.
"It wrecked that evening because you're so disappointed. Some people emotionally would carry that with them for a while. I've always been able to switch it off and start again. Whether that's a good or bad thing, that's just how I'm made."
While their meltdown in front of a stunned Den was dramatic, Rowett believes much of the damage had already been done.
The Lions won just two of their final nine matches, including a 2-1 defeat by rock-bottom Wigan, who were already down, in their third to last game.
"The last nine games were probably more of an issue than the last 45 minutes of the last game," he said. "That's where you have to look.
"We lost a bit of consistency. But overall, for us to get to the last game and be so close to the top six, and for that to be the case over the last three or four seasons, it has to be seen — and I certainly see it — as success of sorts.
"Of course, the ultimate success is to get in the top six. But to have to win a home game on the final day, you'd have taken that at the start of the season."
Last year, Millwall had the 16th-highest budget in the second tier and they have consistently punched above their weight under Rowett, even if late stumbles are a recurring theme.
In 2021-22, Millwall won three of the final nine games, their outside hopes of a play-off place ending with a final-day defeat by Bournemouth. The year before, they had just one win in their last six matches and slipped into mid-table.
Does Rowett think part of the issue may be psychological for his players?
"No, not really. There's always pressure on a club like ours to take that step because we haven't taken it before. It's just a competitive league. If you don't win those games, you're going to fall a bit short. This division chews up reputations and spits them out.
"Players are pretty resilient, they move on quickly as well. Apart from talking to one or two people over the summer, I genuinely haven't dwelt on it for too long."
Despite the tragedy and upheaval of losing the highly-respected Berylson, who has been succeeded as chairman by his son James, Millwall have had another encouraging summer, with the capture of Joe Bryan on a free transfer from Fulham the pick of four signings.
Rowett is hoping for at least two more additions but has acknowledged the club cannot stand in the way of Zian Flemming, a target for Burnley, moving to the Premier League for the right price. The manager said: "Top six is the aim for us and if Millwall get in the play-offs, like Luton, anything can happen — they've shown that. I could make it easier for myself and talk about budgets, [former] Premier League teams. But that's not what it's about. It's about being ambitious." So what can Millwall do to finally secure a play-off berth? "There's no magic wand," Rowett said. "It's such a tough league, it's going to be another incredibly competitive season.
"Whether you want to call it marginal gains or something different, it is just [about] incrementally trying to improve little bits every season. That's support for the players, that's demanding more sacrifice from the players to be better personally and professionally. And that's improving the squad further.
"While last season there was disappointment, we have to use that [Blackburn] defeat as fuel to motivate us to go one step better. I think the players are motivated to do that."
