IAN Miller is relishing the extra responsibility at Darlington this season.

Appointed skipper when Steve Foster’s contract situation meant he wasn’t going to play, Miller has become one of the elder statesman in a fledgling side.

Put forward to conduct interviews on New Year’s Eve after boss Steve Staunton wasn’t available to face the media, Miller has taken on a more active role on and off the pitch to prevent some of the younger players from losing heart.

Today’s game with Port Vale was frozen off yesterday – the club’s fourth successive postponement.

Miller has fully recovered from his niggling hamstring problem and was scheduled to return to action.

A new date has not been announced for the fixture, which was cancelled on safety grounds because of snow and ice.

Quakers go into the new year facing the prospect of a congested programme as they look to turn around their very disappointing League Two campaign.

Miller admits to treading a fine line when offering constructive criticism to less experienced members of the squad, but he makes no apologies for reminding colleagues of their responsibilities.

“I was flattered to be asked to be skipper and I take the role seriously, but I also think we all need to show leadership,” he noted.

“We need to learn to take criticism from one another, which is difficult when you have youngsters or inexperienced players in the squad. Sometimes they don’t take comments in the right way.

“Once we’ve let one goal in some of us seem to be waiting for the opposition to score a second rather than looking to hit back.

“You want youth teamers to take comments on board but you don’t want to scare them to death – it’s a balancing act. If we start moping around then it’s not going to help us.”

Miller revealed that he was disappointed to learn that, in the aftermath of last month’s 5-0 defeat at Torquay United, some players were pestering Staunton to allow them to watch the X Factor during coach trip back to Darlington.

“Surely, common sense prevails there. We had just been beaten by a team we shouldn’t have lost to.

“We were a long way from home and the gaffer has played a video of the game on the coach and then people are asking to watch the X Factor? You don’t do that! You should be sitting there asking why we just got absolutely bullied by a very average team.

“As for the gaffer and strictness, if he rolls over and lets us tickle his belly we’ll be getting smashed by the opposition even more.

“If you’re late at a football club it’s no different from a 9 to 5 job, you get punished. If you’re late for training on a Monday you’ll be late arriving for a tackle on Saturday, that’s how I see it.”

Miller was made captain following Foster’s contract dispute with the club and he admits that he has sympathy for both parties.

“It can work both ways,’’ he said. “If Fozzie was desperate to play for Darlington he could take out the clause of his contract that gives him a year extension after 20 games and that would resolve the situation.

“On the other side, Fozzie has done the club a favour by staying last summer. He took a pay decrease then and should he be asked to do the club another favour and remove the clause?

“That’s down to him. He’s been in the game long enough to know he must do what he feels is right whether he stays or finds a new club in January is also up to him.

“He’s 35 and hasn’t got a lot of years left as a professional. Not that you’d know it on the training ground, where he acts like one of the biggest kids you could ever see. He’s got great energy and enthusiasm and just wants to play football.”