Jack Thomson’s piledriver and Joe Hungbo’s stunning free-kick looked to have sealed it before United clawed one back after Connor Ripley dropped a cross and the visitors were so close to levelling at the death.

Millers boss Alex Bruce was also sent off for protesting about the second dismissal.

Holloway said: “Out of all my games, that’s probably the weirdest. Did we deserve all three points? Probably not. We let nine men score, but then they almost scored again. I’d have been absolutely fuming.

“Their manager gets sent off. It’s just mad.

“We made it look as hard as it possibly could be. We were lucky in the end. It was absolutely hideous, but we’ve got three points and that gives us a chance to keep going.

“It was horrendous. I hated every minute of it. Games like that will make me feel so old. It’s a joke.”

Jili Buyabu was sent off after just four minutes for elbowing Jack Thomson.

Matty Virtue should have netted after Tom Nichols slotted him through, but his tame shot was saved by Julian Eyestone.

Virtue then dragged a low shot wide from distance before Mitch Clark nodded wide at the back stick.
Eyestone then did well to parry a Joe Snowden piledriver from outside the box.

Town went ahead on the stroke of half-time after Thomson’s low rocket from 30 yards took a deflection, which wrong-footed Eyestone.

In the 79th minute, Dominic Iorfa was dismissed for a last-man foul on Virtue and from the free-kick, Hungbo bent superbly into the top corner.

United boss Alex Bruce was then sent off for his protests.

A clanger by Connor Ripley gave Rotheram hope after he dropped up a routine cross and Denzel Hall fired home in the 87th minute.

In added time, Sonny Aljofree spurned a simple chance to level against all the odds.

Rotherham are now winless in seven games and assistant boss Steve Agnew admitted the early sending-off had sent all their tactical plans out of the window within minutes.

He said: “We’re all disappointed and Jilu basically he’s let his team-mates down more than anything.”

On Bruce’s dismissal, he said: “The emotions run high. I think he kicked the bottle and apparently that is something that’s not permitted, which results in a red card.

“But there’s a lot of emotion attached to what we’re going through at the minute.

“And we’ve felt from day one when we’ve come in and built the squad that we have had so many hits.

“I’ve never, as a coach, been through scenarios week after week where everything seems to go against you.”