Before the start of this campaign, Warne got his players and coaching staff to open up about their private lives – each were asked to deliver a talk in front of the squad about someone special in their lives.
It was an exercise aimed at bringing the new signings and existing players closer together.
“One of my coaches had lost his dad and he was crying as he was talking about him,” said Warne. “One of the players talked about his son – no-one knew he had a son.
“Another player talked about trying really hard at school but his dad didn’t want him to be a footballer but he did it anyway with his mum’s love.
“Eventually he helped his mum and dad out when they went through bad times.
“I asked him for his dad’s number and I phoned his dad up. I was pretty emotional just telling him what a great human being he had as a son.”
Warne also opened up to his players.
“I stood up and told them about my family, my kids and what they mean to me. My father, Russell, is not very well at the moment. Bless him, he’s on his way out and life is short and football careers are even shorter.
“If players want to come in and want to waste a day or be moody – don’t come in because I can’t tolerate it. I just want my players to have emotional intelligence and an emotional attachment to one another.”
Family is everything to Warne.
He lives 15 miles away from Rotherham’s New York Stadium in the small town of Tickhill, with wife Rachel, 12-year-old daughter Riley and son Mack, 15, who played in his testimonial game, external in 2013.
A sign in Warne’s office at the club’s Roundwood Sports Complex training base reads: “Talent may get you in the door, but character will keep you in the room.”
Dressing room cliques are not tolerated by Warne, who has recently finished reading Carlo Ancelotti’s book Quiet Leadership.
“I’ve been involved in teams where there were divides. I hated all that,” he added.
“We haven’t got the best players in the league, we’ve got a League One team still. But the lads I have got all try to buy into what we try to be as people.
“I need them to have a real appreciation of one another. It’s easy to see someone train badly and then criticise them.
“You don’t know what’s happening in their life. You don’t know if his partner is ill or if his wife has had a miscarriage.”