Upbeat mindset for Iron contest
KEITH Hill takes his Rochdale squad to Scunthorpe today looking to build on the feelgood factor around the club.
Last weekend’s win at Coventry was followed by a midweek Checkatrade Trophy victory against arch rivals Bury in which marquee signing Zach Clough scored on his Dale bow, a host of young players impressed and the likes of Jordan Williams – who has struggled to force his way into the first team – made positive impacts.
It means Dale head to the Iron in upbeat frame of mind.
“There are places up for grabs, there’s no question about that,” said Hill.
“Jordan Williams is making an impression. He has been unfortunate not to be involved, especially when he starts pressing, closing down, showing the energy that he’s shown and the intelligence.
“The squad is good. It’s youthful but there’s also good experience in their as well. That performance on Tuesday supports the environment and it will support the players who have got the shirts not to be lazy, disrespectful, arrogant or complacent.”
The Checkatrade Trophy once again gave Hill the opportunity to pitch several youngsters from the club’s youth ranks into the first team.
Matty Gillam scored in the 2-1 win against The Shakers having started alongside Dan Adshead, who earlier in the day had penned his first professional contract with the club. Aaron Morley also started while 15-year-old Luke Matheson made a big impression when he came on as an early sub for Connor Randall.
“League One, for Rochdale, is getting harder and harder for us to maintain our League One status, so it’s difficult to get the likes of Aaron Morley, Dan Adshead, Luke Matheson and Matty Gillam game time in League One because we want to stay in League One, at least,” he said.
“So, it was important that I played those players, rewarded them for the work they’ve been doing on the training pitch and it was reflected in their performance.
“I thought it was an outstanding performance in the first-half. The first half was football enjoyment. We got tired, it was evident, but for me, the first half was beautiful.
“It could be a look into the future, but that firsthalf was amazing in every aspect, with and without the ball.
“A lot of them haven’t completed 90 minutes since pre-season, and Gilly and a couple of others including Jordan Williams ran themselves into the ground. That’s what I want. I’d rather them burn out than fade away. I thought Aaron Morley was outstanding and Dan Adshead was superb. The future could be bright for this football club, as well as individually for those players. I’m really pleased that they’ve got their reward result wise.”
And on Clough’s goalscoring debut Hill said: “That’s what we’ve brought him in for. He shows great movement, he never looks uncomposed, he’s got great vision, he has an awareness about the opponent as well as his team mates and he knows where the goal is. I thought he was outstanding in lasting 90 minutes for us.
“When he gets up to real speed, instead of 60-minute speed, then he’s going to be a really exciting player.”