Popular Portsmouth defender Sean Raggett reveals why he's signed for Rotherham after Fratton Park exit

Sean Raggett has revealed why he chose Rotherham to be his next club following his Portsmouth departure.

The now former Blues centre-half was announced as the Millers’ fifth signing of the close season on Friday evening, after penning a two-year deal with the New York Stadium side.

There, he’ll link up with former Fratton Park team-mate Joe Rafferty, who completed a deal to join the recently-relegated Championship outfit earlier in the week, as manager Steve Evans attempts to assemble a squad that will be good enough to compete for League One promotion next season.

Raggett, who proved to be a key member of John Mousinho’s title-winning team after a bit-part role at the start of the season, will not have been short of offers when his Pompey exit was confirmed at the beginning of May. But the 30-year-old admitted he remains ambitious and believes his thirst for another promotion-winning campaign can be quenched at Rotherham under Evans.

Speaking to the club’s media team after being unveiled as a Millers player for the second time in his career, Raggett said: ‘I’m over the moon to be back here. It seems quite a while ago that I was here but as soon as I spoke to the gaffer and he let me know he wanted me to come here, I was thinking “what a place to come back to”.

‘I think it’s a club that’s always challenging at the top of League One - and that was the most important thing for me, for sure. I want to get promoted again and I thought this was the best place to achieve that.

‘When I met him (Evans), he had good things to say about the club and about me as well and I just got a really good feeling speaking to him. I thought “yeah, this club’s going to be really competitive next season” and made me want to sign for sure.’

Joining Raggett and Rafferty at Rotherham next season will be former Peterborough striker Jonson Clarke-Harris, ex-Sheffield Wednesday defender Reece James and midfielder McWilliams, who has joined from Northampton.

The now ex-Blues duo both started 30-plus games this season as Pompey secured the League One title with 97 points. Raggett believes a reunion at the New York Stadium will only benefit Rotherham next season.

He added: ‘I spoke to Raffs a fair bit when I saw that he signed. I’ve played next to him the past two years and obviously I get on really well with him. I think we understand each other’s games, so I think that’s going to be a real positive for the club.’

Raggett featured 10 times for Rotherham during the 2018-19 season while on loan from Norwich.