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Reply | Refwatch - Rochdale v Gillingham
at 21:45 5 Sep 2026
As a fanbase I think the Dale fans are quite a patient and realistic lot. We've certainly experienced enough over the years to know what we could and should put up with.
The optimistic out there have been clinging onto the hope that Tuesday was a sign of dawn breaking, but today gave a lot more evidence that the light in the tunnel was a train approaching.
His team selection was ok, but the test of a decent manager is to assess whether your initial plans are working, and if they aren't do something about it - at the right time. It was 6 minutes after the sending off that he put Gilmour on, and he waited until 81 before making another 2 subs. And Mani's obligatory hooking off with 2 minutes of normal time to go - what does IW see in his performances to justify keeping him on the pitch? As many have said, Hendo at least looks like he's bothered and in all his short cameos shows a willingness to try something different.
If IW lasts beyond the fans forum, it probably goes without saying we need something special next week to justify our faith in him in our first league game against decent opposition. [Post edited 5 Sep 23:54]
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Reply | Refwatch - Rochdale v Shrewsbury Town
at 11:03 2 Sep 2026
Lots of positives from last night, and IW may have stumbled on a back 4 which works. As many have said Moss was probably MoM last night, rather than the choice on the night of Hannant.
Adeeko was a pocket dynamo in the middle, and Smith's late cameo was a glimpse of what we haven't seen since the pre-Jim days.
The scoreline was flattering however, and the better teams aren't going to miss the gilt edged chances that Shrewsbury did. IW seems a very passive manager - from around the 60th minute you could sense the momentum had changed and it was crying out for some tweaks. Maybe Smith's fitness had a big bearing on the time of his introduction, but Hendo could have come on much sooner for Mani.
IW's earned some more time, so lets hope this will be seen as a big turning point at the end of the season. |
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Reply | New Manager speculation
at 11:21 9 Jun 2026
Sounds an interesting option, and the local SS paper is reporting both he and his assistant will definitely be leaving.
The experienced old head option didn't work with Coleman or Bentley, so someone who isn't quite as green as Stockdale and BBM sounds exciting and should be a smooth transition given his passing based approach. Hopefully there will be some low hanging fruit from NLN that can step up to L2 and can join the project. You'd think that would definitely be achievable from a budget perspective. |
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Reply | Jim leaves
at 18:20 5 Jun 2026
Good luck Jim, and thanks for a season which will probably still be talked about fondly when a lot of us are also long gone.
Whether it is the right decision will become obvious by Xmas. If he keeps the same brand of football, unless Stockport are right up there challenging for the top place, you can imagine the locals and the owners will show a lot less patience than the Dale fans.
The official Stockport announcement doesn't make any reference to the backroom staff following him, so it seems quite likely we'll at least have some continuity there. The best result imo would be to get a new experienced head coach who is prepared to work with what we have - be that someone with L2 experience or a progressive NL coach like Garrard. We are surely a very attractive proposition for the right manager - lets get him in place, back him, and start looking forward to some exciting front foot football. |
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Thread | Whatmuff Saves
at 08:37 11 May 2026
Simply wow! Have we ever had a young player who has made such an impact on the Club and its destiny in a single season?
Thanks for the memories Olly, and lets hope you can make many more for us next season in the Football League. How about a full time banner to celebrate his achievements? |
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Reply | Refwatch - Sutton United v Rochdale
at 17:14 28 Mar 2026
That could well turn out to be the pivotal goal of the season when we look back on it (hope so). But why do we only show the urgency when we go behind? York stats with a few mins to go - 17 shots 7 on target. Dale - 2 on target all game. |
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Reply | Should he stay or should he go?
at 09:49 19 May 2025
Having kicked this off, this thread should hopefully provide a useful barometer of the fans' feelings of the state of the Dale world.
What I think is obvious is that every fan wants a Jim v2.0 come the start of the season if he is to stay (which seems by far the most likely outcome). One that is more tactically flexible, one that is prepared to play faster more direct football at times. The option for the defence or the keeper to hit wingers who take on their man, and then deliver crosses, rather than reaching the 18 yard box and automatically passing backwards or inside. The recruitment requirements should be obvious to all - we need at least one Bird type up front, and Mitchell should be allowed to develop elsewhere. A stable, dominant keeper is another must, along with more power in the centre of midfield. The zonal marking also looked a car crash in some of the recent games, particularly the Southend one - and can we have a striker on the half way line at corners please. We don't know what's said inside the changing room, but the public Jim needs to be more confident, less reliant on repeating the same old rubbish about clout, and actually BELIEVE we can get promotion. If he doesn't believe it, what chance does anyone else at the Club?
The measure of success for next season isn't as binary as promotion or nothing. Raised crowd numbers and an improved atmosphere would be a major step in the right direction. For this to happen though the brand of football needs to be more exciting - there have been so many missed opportunities this season to engage the "floating fans" who have turned up on the big games, only to deliver the football equivalent of watching paint dry. It is an entertainment business after all, even if the long-standing Dale fans might have been forced to forget this on many occasions over our history.
If the leopard can't change its spots, I firmly agree with the view that any new appointment would need to be an experienced head, who knows this league and the pool of players well. Preferably with experience of getting promotion, or at least going deep into the playoffs. We have definitely tried the new kid on the block approach many, many times recently and seen the results. Ultimately only the Ogdens will know what's out there, and whether Jim can learn from past mistakes, and lets hope they make the right call. |
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Thread | Should he stay or should he go?
at 13:07 16 May 2025
Surely this is the question on every fans' mind after last night, and hopefully on the Ogdens.
In the credit column, BJ is a decent guy and has steered the Dale ship through very choppy waters. The players seem to like him, and you would probably argue that a semi final place in the FA Trophy, and a quarter final exit in the Playoffs is above par based on expectations at the start of the season. He knows the squad, and should know its strengths better than anyone, and SHOULD know where it needs improving. Are we just a few pieces away from a winning jigsaw?
The counter arguments are plentiful - if one definition of insanity is repeating the same thing and expecting different results, we all have collectively experienced deja vous too many times to count. Game management has been woeful at the crunch points - Spennymore, and the 70 minute mark yesterday being the most damning. The style of football is boring to watch, and his tactical inflexibility seems to be known to every opposition manager, particularly the ones with lesser resources whose cunning plan of the "low block" seem to have us totally stumped. Does anyone remember having a winger like Mendez-Laing galloping down the wing, taking men on, and delivering juicy crosses? Combative strikers in the mould of Grant Holt and CoG actually jumping for headers and taking shots whenever the opportunity arises? Keepers who can command their box, and save shots rather than aiming to be a Pirlo. Those are the things which will deliver bums on seats, and gives us a chance of Project 5000.
Should we go again with a few tweaks in the right places, or do we roll the dice and get an experienced, progressive manager for the National League who understands when to mix it, when to go for it, and when to circle the wagons? If the latter, surely now's the time to do it with a full Summer ahead of us rather than loading the bullet in November after the squad is full of another man's players and behind the chasing pack.
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