Rochdale 2–2 Huddersfield Town

Rochdale gained their first point of the new season after twice coming from behind against one of the Promotion favourites Huddersfield Town at Spotland. Jean Louis Akpa-Akpro levelled just before the break and Ashley Grimes earned a point for Steve Eyre’s side in the last minute.

The Dale boss made one change from the side that beat Chesterfield in midweek with Jake Kean replacing Dave Lucas in goal.

In front of a sizeable crowd inside Spotland which included England International Micah Richards and his former Manchester City team mate Kelvin Etuhu, it was the visitors who took the game to Dale and they took the lead on 15 minutes.

Scott Arfield played in Lee Novak who raced away to slot past home debutant Kean in the Dale goal.

The home team were certainly on the back foot and perhaps should have been even further behind when Oscar Gobern sent a free header wide from 8 yards. Gary Naysmith thought he had doubled The Terriers advantage when he rounded Kean but Holness bravely blocked with Novak’s follow being saved and a third shot by Arfield blocked on the line by Darby.

With 3000 travelling fans in attendance, it was they that had the most to shout about with Rochdale showing very little as an attacking threat but against the run of play, Eyre’s men equalised 2 minutes before the break.

Grimes tried to play in an unmarked Adams but his intended pass scooped up off a defender and the ball fell to Akpa-Akpro on the corner of the 6 yard box with the Frenchman making no mistake with a volley.

The equaliser seemed to affect the visitors and an Adams cross was fumbled by Bennett with Grimes loitering but the keeper gathered.

In a carbon copy move of the Dale equaliser, Grimes was running through but instead of playing in Adams who was again unmarked, Grimes opted to shoot but was wayward.

A half time rocket from manager Lee Clark boosted the Terriers and they started the second half much brighter. Novak got on the end of a deep freekick but Kean was equal to it and pushed the ball away.

The visitors re-took the lead midway through the second half through substitute Danny Ward. Holness and Trotman blocked Town shots but when Roberts picked up on the left he pulled the ball back for Ward to sweep home from close range.

The second goal looked to have killed the game although Kean theatrically saved from Goburn’s effort whilst Darby had to be alert to stop Arfield’s counter attack coming to anything.

With the game drifting towards defeat for Eyre’s men, Ashley Grimes popped up to level with his third goal in 2 games. Gary Jones picked a perfect pass through the visiting defence for Grimes who curled the ball around Bennett from just inside the area to notch Dale’s first point of the new season.

Manager Steve Eyre spoke afterwards, he said: “Our intention was to take at least a point from the game so we are delighted against a side that we fully expect to be in the top 2 come May.

“They have got a good manager and some good players and they will win games so we are happy. We have just told the lads we need to stop giving goals away but its credit to everybody that we have come back again. We changed the shape throughout the game and it worked.

“Joe Thompson can be very happy tonight as that’s the second time inside a week that he has come on and the game has turned around. The equaliser in the first half showed our endeavour. When Jean Louis is at full throttle he has a belief and we want to see more of that belief. We got a bit of luck with way the ball fell to him but he stuck it away well. Jonah believes when he gets the ball that something can happen as do the fans and I feel he has found a perfect partner in Grimes who will either give it him back or as we saw today cut inside and put in  the net.

“Micah Richards and Kelvin Etuhu are down in the office. I love them both from my time at City; they have loved it here today and don’t want to go home. I have left some forms on the table and I have told them I’ll be back in 10 minutes and I want the ink on the paper and they will be our players!!!!! Joking apart, I’m proud that I know them and even prouder that they have been here today.

“We have had a guest at the game today that we are going to have a look at this week and we have been on the telephone to Premier League & Championship clubs about some loan players. We have a made a bid for a player from the Championship so we will just have to wait and see although we are probably at the bottom of the pecking order for that player.”

Att:5074

Rochdale: Kean, Darby, Widdowson, Holness, Trotman, Kennedy (Thompson 75), Jones ( C), Tutte, Adams, Grimes, Akpa-Akpro

Subs (not used): Lucas, Twaddle, Marshall, Fagbola

Huudersfield Town: Bennett, Hunt, Naysmith, Clarke ©, McCombe, Roberts, McDermott (Ward 58), Gobern, Miller, Arfield, Novak

Subs (not used): Colgan, Rhodes, Kay, Woods

Referee:    Mr A Haines
Ass Referee:    Mr M Salisbury, Mr A Scregg
4th Official:    Mr P Wright