Rotherham United are still pursuing Blackpool defender Curtis Tilt, despite Blackpool upping their efforts to keep him at the club, as reported by the Rotherham Advertiser.

27-year-old Tilt has been offered a new deal by incoming Tangerines manager Simon Grayson in an attempt to keep him at the club, but Paul Warne hasn't given up hope on taking him to the New York Stadium.

Tilt was attracting bids of £1m from Ipswich 12 months ago but is now the centre of a tussle between the two League One rivals. Despite Warne's interest, he does admit it might be difficult to attract the former Wrexham defender to South Yorkshire.

“I would still love to bring Curtis to the club,” said Warne. “In fairness, I have to respect the fact that he’s Blackpool’s player. If they contact us and say he is available, then great. If he signs a new contract with them and keeps playing his football up there, there’s absolutely nothing I can do about it.

“I do like him. He ticks all the boxes for me as a central defender. If there is an opportunity for us to sign Curtis, for him to come in and improve us, then obviously I’ll take it.

“At this moment, it looks like he will be playing his football at Blackpool next season.”

Tilt spent time with Halesowen, Hednesford and Telford before joining Wrexham and has just two seasons in the EFL behind him with Blackpool.

The Verdict

Tilt would be a super signing for Rotherham but it's also obvious Simon Grayson wants to keep him at Blackpool.

There isn't an obvious benefit of him jumping ship and moving to the Millers. Both sides are in League One, both will expect to be around the top ten this season and both offer a decent chance of Championship football.

The real surprise here is that a Championship club hasn't offered him the chance of an immediate step up. He could be a strong player in the second tier, given the chance.