Brewers slump to the bottom as reject Lund makes a point
BURTON Albion’s winless run continued as Jake Buxton’s side made it a sixth match in all competitions without a victory with a 1-0 defeat to Rochdale at the Pirelli Stadium.
Former Brewer Matty Lund returned to haunt his old side with a header shortly after half-time to lift Dale off the bottom of League One and earn Brian Barry-Murphy’s side a victory that puts them into 17th place.
Without a win in just over a month, Albion now prop up the third tier seven games into the campaign.
Brewers boss Buxton made one change to the side that drew 1-1 with Bristol Rovers on Saturday.
Joe Powell replaced Ciaran Gilligan in midfield as Albion lined up in a 4-3-3 formation, with Kane Hemmings leading the line.
Niall Ennis was named in a matchday squad for the first time after joining on loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers last week.
Rochdale, who had also only won once in League One heading to the Pirelli, handed a debut to centreback Haydon Roberts, who signed on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion on Monday.
An evening of drizzle in East Staffordshire made for a fast start, with both teams struggling to control the ball as it fizzed around the surface.
Albion’s first attempt on goal came 20 minutes in through Aston Villa loanee Indiana Vassilev, who headed over from a Neal Eardley cross.
The Brewers worked it well, with Hemmings flicking on for Lucas Akins, who set up Eardley for the cross.
A second opportunity soon followed as Albion started to dominate.
Vassilev, who swapped wings with
Akins, did well to whip a devilish cross into the box and Hemmings connected with a powerful shot that cannoned off the post.
The Brewers were on top and creating chances for the first time and they needed to make it count for something.
They were very nearly punished by Alex Newby, who collected a cross on the edge of the box and shaped to shoot with his right foot and beat Kieran O’Hara with a curled effort.
Thankfully for Albion, he skewed it wide but Rochdale showed they would not allow their hosts to dictate play.
Rochdale’s confidence soared and thanks to the craft of Brighton loanee Roberts, who was linked with Leeds United and Derby County during the transfer window, they could start attacks in style.
Roberts found Jimmy Keohane with an excellent cross-field pass and the ball was worked into Newby, whose shot was blocked into the path of Dale captain Oliver Rathbone.
He blazed high and wide but the offside flag was already up.
Albion responded by getting up the pitch and earning a corner, one which was worked short to Hemmings.
The Burton native rolled his marker to produce a fine cross for Akins, whose effort was helped wide by Dale defender Jimmy McNulty.
Burton carried on as they left off after the interval, with Powell dragging a shot wide shortly after the restart, a chance fashioned by dogged determination from skipper Stephen Quinn.
But it was to be Rochdale who drew first blood thanks to former Brewer Lund four minutes after halftime.
Lund, who made the step up to the Championship when he joined Burton from Rochdale in 2017, saw his one season at the Pirelli cut short when he was sent out on loan to Bradford City after only 14 appearances.
In his first match against Burton since his Rochdale return, Lund got on the end of an Aaron Morley free kick to loop an effort over O’Hara, with the former Manchester United stopper scrambling in vain to keep it out.
A goal from a player eager to prove a point, perhaps, after a disappointing ending to his first – and only – foray into the second tier of English football.
Albion looked to hit back quickly, with Akins doing well down the right-hand side to arrow a cross into the Rochdale box.
Unfortunately for him, it reached Quinn who, despite his best efforts, couldn’t get enough height on his jump to make a meaningful connection.
Back came Dale, who looked buoyed by their opener and almost scored a second 10 minutes after their first.
Albion would have been 2-0 down but for Leicester City loanee Sam Hughes, whose defensive awareness saw him beat Alex Newby to Tolaji Bola’s cross at the front post and clear the danger.
Rochdale’s tails were up and Albion were caught flat-footed on the wing when Bola played in another cross in the 67th minute but Kieran Wallace did well to steer the danger away.
At this stage, Buxton’s side were struggling to cope with the intensity and speed of Rochdale and Jake Beesley nearly capitalised on a favourable deflection when he was set clear and in on goal.
Unselfishly, he decided to pull the ball back but Hughes dealt with the danger and Albion were let off the hook again.
Dale captain Oliver Rathbone, invited to shoot by an Albion defence standing off him, hit a tame shot at O’Hara but the chances and opportunities were mounting up for Rochdale to put the game out of sight.
Wolverhampton Wanderers loanee Ennis was introduced on the 63rd minute and the forward used his fresh legs to torment the Dale defence, earning a free kick with his
pace.
Ben Fox, 30 yards out, curled a delightful effort inches wide as Albion continued to press for an equaliser.
Shortly after, as the game entered the final 10 minutes, Vassilev showed Premier League quality with a cross that deserved to be turned home but nobody in yellow and black could react quickly enough to steer an effort on target.
Desperation started to kick in for Albion, who were left susceptible on the counter-attack with Dale looking to kill the game and secure the three points.
In the end they wouldn’t need it and now Buxton and his men need to find a winning formula before long, with AFC Wimbledon heading to East Staffordshire on Saturday (3pm).