Pushing all the way for top six
KEITH Hill issued a positive rallying call following his side’s FA Cup fourth round loss against Huddersfield at the weekend.
While Dale’s cup run ended with a 4-0 defeat at the hands of the Terriers, Hill insists there is much to be excited about in the remaining 19 League One fixtures.
And the Dale chief said the club would be doing everything to defy the odds and remain in the play-off mix.
‘I want the players to dream big and have ambition, not be scared of failure’
“We’ve been beaten by an excellent Huddersfield side in the FA Cup, but we’ve got 19 unbelievable fixtures to go for. I don’t want us to just fade away, I’d rather we burned out,” he said.
“Nobody has taken advantage of us not playing. We didn’t play during the week and we didn’t play in the league, whereas a lot of the teams in and around us did.
“It could have been a double whammy at the weekend, we could have been looking at falling out of the play-off places but results haven’t made a significant impact on us.
“I’m a big dreamer. Trust me when I say this, there’s no expectation for us to retain our place in the top is six, but I’m dreaming big. I want the players to dream big and have ambition, not be scared of failure.
“We’ll chase it but there’s no expectation from ourselves, the chairman or the board of directors, because we really shouldn’t be in that position.
“But when I look back over the last few years and when we got promoted from League Two to League One, we had 47 points after 27 games.
“I’m looking at us now, three years later as an established League One side and we’re chasing the dream so why not go for it.
“We’re going to go for it but there shouldn’t be too much disappointment if we don’t manage to.”