Three years in charge for management duo
Date published: 17 December 2009
Photo: Jon Coluccio
Dale boss Keith Hill with assistant David Flitcroft.
Rochdale management duo Keith Hill and David Flitcroft celebrated their third anniversary in charge of the club this week; a tenure that has taken Dale from 22nd place in the league to the very top three years on, with two play-off appearances sandwiched in between.
Hill's turnaround of a club facing a relegation battle in 2007 climaxed last week when the win at Lincoln City confirmed that Dale would top the table at Christmas for the first time in their history.
Not that Hill or Flitcroft will have done much celebrating over the past week; like their young team, they know that it is where you are in May, not December that counts, and the only thing they will have been concentrating on is the game at home to Shrewsbury this Saturday, where a win will give Dale a sixth victory in a row.
January is certain to be a season defining month for the club as Hill hopes to keep his young squad together and keep cash-rich clubs from higher up the leagues away from some of his mercurial talents. Chris Dagnall, Craig Dawson and Will Buckley have all been linked with moves once the transfer window re-opens, while the future of Chris O'Grady, on loan from Oldham, hangs in the balance. Hill has said that it is essential that the club finds the money to sign the striker permanently, while earlier this week Dave Penney, the Oldham boss, insisted that O'Grady would be returning to Boundary Park next month.
Meanwhile, until the new year arrives and the speculation ends, all Dale can do is keeping picking up points over the Christmas period. The first chance to do that comes against a Shrewsbury side that are perhaps not living up to expectations following their appearance in the play-off final last season.
The Shrews, managed by former Dale boss Paul Simpson, lie tenth in the table, two points off the play-offs, and arrive at Spotland with just one win from their last eight matches in all competitions.
Dale are expected to name an unchanged side from that which so comfortably overcame Lincoln last weekend, with no injury news to emerge from Spotland over the past week. Goalkeeper Tom Heaton was suffering a minor groin strain at Sincil Bank, an injury which forced him to relinquish kicking duties late in the encounter, but the young Manchester United stopper should be fine for Saturday.
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