Small details so crucial in the run-in

ROCHDALE boss Keith Hill accepts the spate of injuries suffered among his squad has played upon the players’ mindsets.

Joe Bunney, Matt Lund, Steven Davies, Josh Lillis, Calvin Andrew, Oliver Rathbone and Joe Thompson are among a long list of key players who have been sidelined since the turn of the year, with several stars still out of the reckoning.

“Since the turn of the year, I think the injuries have really affected us psychologically in the way that we’re not picking up as many points as we should do,” Hill told the club’s official website ahead of the trip to Peterborough on Saturday.

“We’ve got to find the right balance to see where it takes us. There’s a sense of an unknown journey now going into these fixtures.

“We need at least three points to at least secure our League One status then we can start really planning with respect to next season.

“First and foremost, our plan is to secure our status as a League One football club next season, and if do end up with the perfect scenario, then we’ll re-plan.

“Nothing has been lost or won at this moment in time.

“This time last year, we had 38 points and were just six points above the relegation drop.

“We played a different way, I put Jimmy McNulty at left-back, we brought in Grant Holt and it all worked out superbly well because I had a solid base and I had maverick spontaneous skill playing up front.

“I don’t want to chase games and end up losing them comfortably. I want to make sure there’s a methodology to the way that we work and I’m looking for improvement.

“I’m looking for improvement from all of the players.

“That’s from the style of play that we want to win and obviously the smaller detail, because we shouldn’t have lost the game against Bolton and we really shouldn’t have drawn the game against Charlton, having gone 3-2 up.

“If we’re going to be real contenders this year, and if not this year, next year, then it’s the small details that individuals have to be better at.”