Hill looking forward to Wimbledon game

Keith Hill has been reflecting on the season so far as Dale get set to welcome AFC Wimbledon to Spotland.

The match marks the 15th league fixture of the campaign and Hill admits he’s happy with the progress that his side is making.

"I’m pleased, in fact I’m over the moon pleased,” Hill said. “We’re being competitive, we’ve got 12 different goal scorers from all competitions this season and after taking over in January and bumping first hand into the pessimism that was surrounding the football club, it’s now a great place to work.

"The supporters are 100 percent behind us, I think we’re showing an attractive brand of football and on the whole we’ve been winning games and not losing them, so for me at this moment in time I think we’re in good shape to attack the next phase of the season.

"The next phase of the season is a really important one because before you know it the season is over. For me, the 15th game through to the 23rd game is a really important phase of the season. It doesn’t mean that the season has been achieved or that it has been lost, but it’s a great indication of how far we might have come and how far we can go.”

AFC Wimbledon are the visitors to Spotland on Saturday and Hill says he’s looking forward to going up against them for the first time as a manager.

“We’re looking forward to the weekend and we’re looking forward to meeting the opposition, the first as a manager. We’re in good stead, we’re confident, we’re in good shape, there are no negative thoughts, there are no negative surroundings and we’re really looking forward to the fixture.”