Tepid, toothless show sees Dale on edge of precipice
CONSISTENCY of sorts – but not the kind Rochdale need in their hour of desperate need. Brian Barry-murphy’s men were ineffective in attack against Ipswich on Easter Monday and were toothless in a tepid performance at Fleetwood on Saturday.
In fact, they looked even less likely to score than they had five days earlier, the continued omission of injured duo Stephen Humphrys and Matt Lund proving a heavier blow with each passing game.
And games are running out fast - supporters have been assured by management and players alike that this collective remain steadfast in their belief they can stave off the fall into League Two, that results will drop in for them, that relegation is not the foregone conclusion some have been predicting for several weeks.
Fans have been told confidence remains intact.
Alas, on the evidence of this meek surrender, there’s little to support such positivity.
The modicum of momentum gained in the out-of-the-blue win at Lincoln and the draw against Peterborough has been lost, the unfortunate break in play brought about by international call ups didn’t help at all and one point from the last three games has left Dale off the pace at the bottom of the table.
Perhaps most concerning of all, in those last three games Dale could only really point to the second half at Portsmouth and claim to have played anywhere approaching half decent.
Saturday’s result left them six points away from safety with just seven fixtures remaining.
Dale were due to face Swindon on Tuesday evening, the first of three home games over the next week and unless they can turn around their appalling home form quickly, League Two football next season will be confirmed sooner rather than later.
At Fleetwood, Ryan Mclaughlin returned from injury to replace Kwadwo Baah in the starting eleven, in the only change from Easter Monday’s draw with Ipswich Town.
The hosts tested first, within the opening sixty seconds, when Callum Connelly head down and narrowly wide of the upright from a corner, which had been sent to the back post.
And any Dale prematch preparations were dealt a blow after just 13 minutes, when they forced into their first substitution of the game. Matty Done took a bang to the head following a hefty challenge and he was replaced by Baah.
When play got back underway, Wes Burns saw a header held by Jay Lynch, before heading wide moments later.
Former Rochdale midfielder and Academy graduate Callum Camps attempted an acrobatic over-head kick, but he could only steer his audacious effort wide of the upright, from just inside the area.
Up the other end, and Dale were denied on the line shortly before the half hour mark. After Baah had sliced a shot wide, Mclaughlin kept the ball in play before pulling it back to Ollie Rathbone, who saw his low effort cleared off the line.
Soon after, Rathbone dragged an effort past the post, as neither team could break the deadlock, and the sides went in level at the interval.
Rochdale started the second half brightly and forced Alex Cairns into a save a few minutes after the restart, with the Fleetwood goalkeeper holding a header from Beesley, after he’d got on the end of a Baah ball in from the left.
But Dale went behind soon after, in the 52nd minute, through an own goal. Burns’ low ball in from the right was turned home from close range by O’connell.
Rochdale almost responded immediately, when Conor Grant spotted Cairns off his line and took a quick free-kick, forcing the ‘keeper to scurry back and tip his strike up and over the bar at the last.
A double Dale change followed in the 56th minute, as Grant and Conor Shaughnessy made way for Stephen Dooley and Aaron Morley, before a fourth substation came 12 minutes later, when Jack Vale replaced Haydon Roberts.
As the game progressed chances were at a premium for both sides, but Burns fired a low effort across goal and narrowly wide of the upright late on, before Morley came agonisingly close to earning Dale a point in the dying minutes.
He spotted an opportunity from a free-kick to go directly for goal from a free-kick leaving Cairns stranded, but he struck inches wide and into the side netting.
Fleetwood boss Simon Grayson said he’d changed his system to counter Dale’s strengths.
“Today was a game where we had to be on it out of possession, making sure you stop the opposition from playing. We changed the system because we thought that there might be a way of winning another football match, something different,” he said.
“It was a difficult game because the pitch was really lively, it wasn’t easy to pass the ball around but ultimately, we’ve defended well. I don’t know if Cairnsy [Alex Cairns] has had a shot to save.
“It just shows you that if you keep clean sheets and get goals at the other end you’ve got a great chance of winning games.
“Of course, we could play better with the ball but at this stage of the season it’s about results but also the pitches that we play on aren’t great at the moment so that can affect how you play sometimes.”