McNulty: Tactical bravery paid off

DALE defender Jim McNulty said it called for brave tactics to earn a point at Blackpool on Tuesday.

The in-form Seasiders had won their previous seven home games but found Keith Hill’s side too tough to break down.

“We were very happy to come away with a point,” said McNulty.

“We knew it was going to be very difficult coming here, we’ve watched them against a numbers of teams and they are a very attractive side, very brave. They seem to have the players to play that style of football and I think they will hurt teams.

“I think we played very bravely against them, we kind of exposed ourselves a little bit in wide areas to try to put a little bit more pressure on them, to demand that they were on top form at trying to play the ball out from the back, because that’s what they do. We put that extra bit of pressure on to make sure they had to perform those skills properly.

“In the end, the ball turned over to us a few times and the gameplan worked well for us against what is a very good side.”

And with illness and injuries clearing, McNulty can only see Dale getting better.

“We are starting to see the real Rochdale,” he said. “Initially this season it was actually a bit ridiculous.

“We were turning up for game days and players who were starting were not in the team, we had players stuck in traffic and there were some bizarre events going on that I’ve not seen in all my seasons in football. We were losing players because of it. Now, players are returning and we are starting to look a bit more like ourselves.”