Attacking ploy shows way forward

ROCHDALE’S 2-2 draw against Tottenham in the FA Cup fifth round was a triumph for the footballing cavaliers over the roundheads.

Dale’s brave ploy of taking the game to the the Premier League outfit earned plaudits across the country.

And Keith Hill hopes it served to remind supporters and managers what the game is all about.

Hill reckons too many of his fellow bosses adopt a safety-first approach in a bid to consolidate their league status. And he feels some club supporters have bought into that negative mindset with survival in the Premier League or Championship the be all and end all.

But Hill says it can make for dull viewing and his side’s have-ago approach to Sunday’s clash showed it can be done differently.

“There is a lot of football snobbery and it’s only this week that you get listened to or get heard,” he said.

“I watch elite Premier League football games, but I watch a lot of dross as well and I believe that the Championship, League One and Two are producing some really good footballing lessons of the way it can be done, even in the Premier League.

“There is this massive pressure, financial pressure more than anything, to stay in the Premier League and I think that has got to a lot of managers and supporters up and down the league. They turn up and watch their team stay in the Premier League, and that’s it.

“It’s almost like they are flatlining in the Premier League because they don’t give themselves a chance of winning against the elite top six. There is some brilliant football being played and some brilliant tactics in the Premier League, but there is some exciting football being played in the Championship, Leagues One and Two and even the National League and beyond.

“I must admit, I do like watching the big, big games in the Premier League and I’ll be tuning into the League Cup final this weekend because I think it’s a great spectacle for the way football should be played.”

“But there is superb football to be watched below the Premier League.”

Hill is expecting another mentally testing match against Totttenham when the two side cross swords again on Wednesday at Wembley.

He revealed the stats from the game told only half the story when they were analysed this week.

“We had a look at the physical data from the game and it was comparable to the previous game we played against Bristol Rovers, which had been one of our best data results,” said the Dale chief.

“But against Tottenham it was more mental because the ball is in play more, the concentration levels are what affects players more so than physical conditioning.

“The majority of players these days are fit and that is one place where you know you can be at least equal with Premier League opponents, with respect to your general fitness and wellbeing.”

A big night in store for the players then, but also for the Hill family.

“I lost my dad this time last year, on the 25th of February, and the last time I was at Wembley I took my dad and on Wednesday I will be taking my son and hopefully he will be mascot,” said Hill.

‘There is some football to be watched below the Premier League’