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To be more clear I am saying there will be at least 23 games on other pitches as well as our own which may or not be as good as ours and in weather which in winter will undoubtedly be awful on many occasions in Rochdale and at other venues....
The Accrington match actually showed us that whilst our pitch drains well and hasn't cut up particularly , it does seem become very slick, which is a feature of the type of surface, and will cause problems for wingers and players who have to turn quickly or make a well-weighted pass. Equally a delicate first touch also becomes very difficult... Accrington played direct simple football, often missing out midfield and passing the ball 30% less than we did, whilst concentrating on putting the ball into our penalty area as often as possible... ..26 shots to 5...with 10 - 1 on target. For balance, the stats for the Port Vale game were quite even in just about every measurable area but they capitalised on what from the highlights looks like some very poor defending.
Having stsrted to write 3 posts in the last 48 hours and scrapped them all in the hope that time would heal the wound, I can honestly say its not working... I have no idea how a club can get into the position where over a third of the players are injured. A club that has gone from playing an identifiable system to nothing recognisable as a system.. players who look less like professional footballers than lads playing in the local pub leagues and much less interested in the outcome of games. Its a complete shambles, I said Watson deserved at least 10 games when the early criticism started, and things did indeed improve, but as we move towards halfway, its hard to see where the, now urgently-needed, improvement is coming from, and worse, I dont really see a solution...Sack the manager, then what? What self- respecting manager would want anything to do with this squad? Teams are built on spirit, enthusiasm, talent , experience and endeavour, all seemingly lacking, but who assembled this group? What were they thinking? The board said they wanted " technical" players, all well and good until you realise that this is Rochdale and you are going to play most of the season on pitches and in weather that do not lend themselves to " technical" intricate football. Sometimes you just have to dig in and plough on. EFL2 is the land of giants , six foot, 13,14 stone players are the opposition, you either match them for size , physicallity and athleticism or they run over you, "technical" or not.. The initial poor start was monentarily stalled by the arrival of a 6 foot 6 inch centre half.. it was a clue to what was required....but he cant do anything alone, he needs a team around him and thats the crux of the problem.. we are defensively a wet paper bag. This team has no spine objectively and metaphorically, EFL2 requires a big target man, a poacher playing off him and a winger providing crosses , ( not 5 wingers and no target). It needs a midfield General, someone who understands how to start attacks and how to stop them. And it needs defenders who know they have to stop crosses, put their head in where it hurts, and mark their man, if neccessary literally. It also needs a keeper who catches crosses, shouts at his defenders and doesn't play silly buggers..., as long as the ball is in the opponents half they won't be bothering him... You can't just let your man run free and just stand still watching him score.. yes Mr Sherring I am looking at you, or stand 5 yards off him and then let him just run past you..football is a contact sport, make some contact! . The only thing that has really become apparent is that if a decisionof some sort isnt made quickly, we will end up back in the National League next season. My plan would be a January clear out and rebuld the spine together with a new game plan based on nicking points wherever possible, we know what the target is ..50+ points .. lets set up to do that now with what we have , do some business in January and pray it's enough... Whatever the original plan was, it simply has not survived first contact with the enemy and has to change quickly... And if Watson can't change we will have to find someone who can...!!
Rodney's contract expires at the end of the season ...as does Mani D's, selling or paying them off in January might not be as expensive as not replacing them and getting relegated again...I would swap them both for a Cardwell or similar...maybe Southend would take our two in exchange? We are desperate for someone to make defending hard, physical work and create space for Brown and Hendo... no point in 5 wingers if there is noone to take advantage of their crosses... Equally we carry no great threat from midfield except perhaps Pettit... On a side note it was 2012 -13 when a club ( Barnet) was relegated with 50 or more points and currently we are tracking 49 (ish) but the trend is not our friend at the moment.. we need to target being on 25 + points by Christmas ( 8 more games 10-12 more points) and hope players returning from injury help us out...
Hindsight is a wonderful thing but... there is too much right now that feels like 22-23....An inability to keep a clean sheet , no goalscorer, weak midfield and rooky defenders...five wingers and a centre forward who cant win headers... The injuriy situation is the only mitigation for an unbalanced squad in the sense that we dont have the physicality or experience needed at this level . L2 is a battle every week sometimes twice a week , we are nearly a third of the way into the season and need to accept we are in a relegation battle already.. and act accordingly...stop leaking goals, start nicking points , find a brute of a centre forward..and a midfield leader....stop the silly mistakes and play like men on a mission from the first whistle. Losing regularly has dire consequences at this level.
Difficult to find any positives from today.. Waller has conceded 16 in 5 appearances.... Accrington were quicker, slicker and more direct. We wanted to play possession football on a day that was crying out for pace and directness. But, with a better team sitting in the stands ( or more likely at home keeping warm) you can only play the cards that are dealt...Fate is not being kind to us at the moment. Isn't it always the case that when you have injuries, its never the fringe players with the problems? Sherring is either not very good or completely devoid of confidence, every ball he played was underhit or was simply the wrong ball at the wrong time, Francis is annonymous and the tactic of using two wingers was doomed as soon as their defenders denied them space and stopped them going down the outside. . Once the wingers were nullified it became one way traffic.. no plan B given the players available... I can't see a way forward at the moment, Accy simply ran over us, it was Gillingham on steroids..I think we have been rumbled. Accy probably came on Tuesday night and realised how limited we are and planned accordingly, as will everyone else until we get 6 or 7 injured players back into the team and on the bench...a tough season ahead I suspect...the defence has to improve, the midfield needs bite and guile and the attack needs goals and I dont see how its going to happen this side of Christmas...
Yesterday, I sent an email to Ian Watson via the club , to suggest he investigates the use of Ballet exercises as part of the training regime, the Northern College of Dance is 10 minutes from Platt Lane, sending a couple of our coaches down there for a day or two to learn about Ballet training would be a useful addition to their skill sets... Apparently a number of clubs are adding these exercisies to their Academy training with a view to improving strength and flexibility Equally the rehabilitation from these injuries would be helped by Ballet exercises to help prevent recurrance.
• Arsenal FC: Current first-team manager Mikel Arteta has actively explored and spoken about incorporating ballet concepts into Arsenal's physical training routines to maximize fluidity and body control. • The "Barre" Trend: Rather than calling it "ballet," clubs across Europe routinely feature barre workouts and dynamic hip-mobility drills led by specialized club physiotherapists. This form of training is especially standard during pre-season camps to build "eccentric strength" in the feet, ankles, and inner thighs—muscles that are notoriously prone to groin pulls and sports hernias in soccer players.
Football Injury Vulnerability Cause Ballet Counter-Exercise Biomechanical Fix Hamstring Strain Weakness during high-speed running extension Arabesque Eccentric strengthening of the posterior chain Ankle Sprain Poor landing mechanics or weak lateral stabilizers Tendu / Relevé Increased intrinsic foot strength and proprioception Groin Pull Overuse and tightness in the hip adductors Rond de Jambe Dynamic flexibility and active hip rotational control ACL Tear Knee valgus (buckling inward) during sharp cuts Plié (with strict turnout alignment) Teaches knees to track safely over toes under load
As of October 2026, Rochdale AFC is experiencing a severe injury crisis, with Head Coach Ian Watson confirming that 13 First Team players are currently sidelined. The complete breakdown of injured players and their respective injuries includes:
Player Position. Injury Type Dan Moss Defender Knee (Ruptured ACL — out for the season) Will Jenkins Midfielder Knee (Ruptured ACL — out for the season) Casey Pettit Midfielder Knee (MCL injury — out several months) Nils Ramming Goalkeeper Thigh (Tear — out approx. 10 weeks) Laurence Maguire Defender Calf (Torn calf — out approx. 10 weeks) Bryant Bilongo Defender Hamstring (Pulled hamstring — out approx. 6 weeks) Emmanuel "Mani" Dieseruvwe Forward Hamstring (Pulled hamstring) Tobi Adebayo-Rowling Defender Unspecified match injury (Sustained 20 Oct) Kane Taylor Midfielder Unspecified match injury (Sustained 20 Oct) Ryan East Midfielder Toe injury Jonny Smith Forward Leg injury Devante Rodney Forward Persistent pain / flair-up (underwent steroid injection) Ethan Ebanks-Landell Defender Unspecified pain/mobility injury
It also requires physicallity and Athlicism, both Matheson and Adshead had the required skills but unfortunately not the height, pace or power. Teams at the top of the pyramid simply work on the theory that if you start with 10 youths for a particular position with the requisite skills, one of them will perhaps turn out to be a Premiership footballer, or at least someone that can be sold to a championship club for more than the cost of their training and development. Its hugely cynical, the saving grace being that the majority of those going through the system will eventually find a level at which they can earn a living or add decent money to a wage earned outside football. The Peterborough model is similar but they tend to concentrate on finding forwards rather than defenders on the basis that goalscorers are more likely to attract big money deals, they prey on lower league clubs who have to sell talent to survive, We were one of their victims when they took Nevett. Their player turnover is huge but, I guess if you can make two or three million a year by buying and selling players its not a bad business model.
This is becoming a decent start to the season, 14 points in the first 10 games is our best haul in tiers 3 or 4 for the last 10 seasons... 1.4 pts per game for the season would take us to a comfortable 64 points.. comparable with our first season in the National League
Season League Tier Points after 10 Games Record after 10 Games Final League Position 2026–2027 League Two (Tier 4) 14 4 Wins, 2 Draws, 4 Losses Season in progress 2025–2026 National League (Tier 5) 25 8 Wins, 1 Draw, 1 Loss 2nd (106 pts - Promoted) 2024–2025 National League (Tier 5) 14 4 Wins, 2 Draws, 4 Losses 4th (74 pts) 2023–2024 National League (Tier 5) 14 4 Wins, 2 Draws, 4 Losses 11th (62 pts) 2022–2023 League Two (Tier 4) 5 1 Win, 2 Draws, 7 Losses 24th (38 pts - Relegated) 2021–2022 League Two (Tier 4) 12 3 Wins, 3 Draws, 4 Losses 18th (53 pts) 2020–2021 League One (Tier 3) 12 3 Wins, 3 Draws, 4 Losses 21st (47 pts - Relegated) 2019–2020 League One (Tier 3) 13 3 Wins, 4 Draws, 3 Losses 18th (36 pts - PPG basis) 2018–2019 League One (Tier 3) 11 3 Wins, 2 Draws, 5 Losses 16th (54 pts) 2017–2018 League One (Tier 3) 9 1 Win, 6 Draws, 3 Losses 20th (51 pts)
The difference the Ogdens have made is not just the availability of finance, it is the simple application fo continuous improvement, which actually goes beyond the immediate requirements and develops the future needs too. Hence, a manager who has the capacity to improve, a new home for training and the academy, huge improvements to the pitch and the ground, these are the building blocks. Players will notice these things and be much keener to come here. Better recruitment will create a better squad, the new Academy home will improve youth recruitment and ultimately will generate the money for more improvements. Continuous improvement , the Honda and Toyota method, applied to any business situation. As we go forward the improvements become smaller, less dramatic but nontheless important. Its a classic strategy that the club has simply never previously had the money to implement, we can now start to look into the future, the age of fire fighting has past, the calibre of new management arrivals is remarkable, lets see where the next 7 years take us.... "Little Rochdale" has gone, its replacement has just started to flex its muscles... Crede Signo....Numquam Respice...Never look back.....
Given that they now send out a post- match email thanking me for attending and with a " how did we do" questionnaire, I guess the next step is to query the list of non- attenders in a similar way.." we noticed you haven't used your ticket for the last few games, is there anything we can do to help"? They may be doing this but as an attendee I don't know.....Hopefully the CAB will get a readout next week...
Combining the ticketing system with a CRM is a powerful tool in these instances. I would urge everyone to fill in and return the questionnaire. Knowing what people are unconcerned about is as important as knowing what bothers them...
It seems that Wilson has found his sea legs in this division, he is looking better every game and Tasker has set a standard that will be hard to beat. Its all beginning to gel nicely, and the pattern is becoming clearer. If Watson can get a tune out of Mani, given the amount of balls that are being pumped into the box from our multitude of wingers, we would be a difficult side to have to contend with.
Appointed as a Junior Minister whilst our MP yes, Tony Lloyd was a Minister in the Foreign Office prior to becoming Rochdale's MP.
Its amazing, (apologies for manager speak), that such an old constituency (1832) has had so little Ministerial representation despite having such high profile MP's as Cyril Smith and Richard Cobden....Nearly 200 years as a constituency and no influence from the front bench must be some sort of record.
Cobden was offered a Baronetcy (inherited Knighthood) following the repeal of the Corn Laws and a place in the Privy Council, but he rejected both and remained Mr. Richard Cobden. It's believed he also rejected 2 offers from both Lord John Russell and Lord Palmerston to sit in the Cabinet.
In terms of the House of Lords: Tony Lloyd was given a posthumous life peerage. Baron Lloyd of Brewick Joel Barnett MP for Heywood and Royton was a life peer ...Baron Barnett John Kemp, 1st Viscount of Rochdale he inherited his Barony from his father (a hereditary title tied to the local Kemp textile manufacturing family - as in Kelsall and Kemp), John Kemp was elevated to a Viscountcy in 1960.
If you are looking at a map, its not much help if you dont know where you are.. Recognising where we are as a town within the country and where the country sits internationally gives perspective and position. The UK has to stop pretending it is a major powerhouse on the international stage, it isnt, and as one of the poorest towns in the UK, its going to need something more radical than a nice town hall and some shops to fix its problems..
Some food for thought, Rochdale is one of the poorest towns in the UK , But the UK is becoming a poor Nation Here is the direct comparison of how the United Kingdom would rank if it were dropped into the list of 51 US states (including Washington, D.C.), using the latest per capita statistical benchmarks: ## 📊 The Rankings Overview
* Total Homicide Rate: 51st (Absolute Safest) * The Data: The UK's homicide rate sits at ~0.86 to 1.15 per 100,000 residents. * The Comparison: This is lower than America's safest state, New Hampshire (~1.4 per 100,000), and roughly five times lower than the US national average (~5.0 per 100,000). * Knife Homicide Rate: ~35th (Lower-Middle Tier) * The Data: The UK records ~0.35 to 0.48 fatal stabbings per 100,000 residents annually. * The Comparison: This is slightly safer than the US national average (~0.53 per 100,000), but higher than roughly 15 low-crime US states like Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire. * Children in State Care: ~25th (Middle Tier) * The Data: The UK has a rate of 670 children in care per 100,000 under-18s. * The Comparison: This sits just below the US national average (~700 to 750 per 100,000). It is vastly safer than crisis states like West Virginia (1,710 per 100,000) but higher than restrictive states like New Jersey (137 per 100,000). * Gang Grooming & Exploitation: Top 5 Worst (Highest Tier) * The Data: Driven by highly organized "County Lines" drug syndicates and street rings, the UK processes roughly 110 out of every 100,000 children through formal safeguarding exploitation systems. * The Comparison: This per capita rate of structural youth exploitation places the UK alongside America's highest-risk urban states like California, Texas, and Illinois. * Civilian Unemployment Rate: 43rd (High Unemployment Tier) * The Data: The UK's active unemployment rate sits at 4.9%. * The Comparison: This tracks far worse than the US national average (4.1%), matching high-unemployment states like Washington (4.9%) and sitting just under Washington D.C. (5.9%). * Household Debt-to-GDP Ratio: Top 10 Highest (Upper Tier) * The Data: Driven by heavily leveraged, short-term mortgage debt, UK household debt sits at 77.0% of nominal GDP. * The Comparison: This out-paces the US national baseline (67.7%) and ranks just behind hyper-expensive US real estate markets like Hawaii and California (>80%). * 5-Year Cancer Survival Rates: 51st (Absolute Bottom) * The Data: Due to systemic NHS diagnostic logjams, late-stage detection, and slower treatment timelines, the UK lags globally. * The Comparison: An individual diagnosed with cancer in the UK has a lower statistical probability of 5-year survival (e.g., ~86% for breast cancer, ~17-20% for lung cancer) than a patient in any of the 50 US states. If the UK were a US state, it would rank 51st (dead last) for GDP per capita, placing it behind Mississippi and every single U.S. state. The Reality vs. Public Perception Actual Standing: Data highlighted by the Institute of Economic Affairs shows the UK's economic output per person sits below the lowest-ranking American state. Public Guess: In surveys, the average British respondent guessed that the UK would rank around 7th among US states, assuming it was wealthier than most of America.The Numbers: UK GDP per capita hovers around $57,000, whereas Mississippi (the lowest US state) exceeds $55,800 to $56,000+ in nominal terms, and the broader US average is closer to $93,000.
I feel pleased for Watson and the Board after today. Its clear things are coming together faster now as players return to fitness. Flint is a Master stroke signing and exactly what a young defence needs, a Sergeant Major to give the orders and set the example...There were glimpses of Watsons "system" too, with pace on the wings and Maguire's late arrival to cement the win...standards being set. A good day at the office...
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