Hill enthralled as Dale prepare to take on Grimsby

Date article online: 04/04/2008

Rochdale manager Keith Hill said he was "enthralled" by the Tuesday night encounter with Bradford City after seeing his side edge out the visitors thanks to a late Adam Le Fondre goal. It was a performance that pushed Dale into the play-off places and they look to continue their bid for promotion as they prepare for the visit of Grimsby Town on Saturday.

"It was a great game. Bradford turned up and for me it felt like a cup match," said Hill."To be honest I was really enthralled with it from up in the stand as two very good sides both wanted to win. There was a lot of bravery out there, epitomised for me by Rory McArdle. It is about bravery and that is what they played with. It is tremendous to see them do that at such a young age.

"We talk about opportunities and you never get opportunities back so you may as well give everything. David Perkins, Gary Jones, numbers 1 to 11, the substitutes and the lads who were in the changing room before and after the game-this was a collective win. Everybody does want to win including the staff. David Flitcroft was absolutely superb. He is a motivator and is motivated himself by nights like these because we haven't seen too many of them here at this club.

"When you look at the league table and the games that we have left it is a massive motivator for the players and for everyone. An opportunity is there and we might not get it next season so whilst we are in this position we want to give everything that we possibly can to achieve our ambitions and this win takes us that little bit closer. We did have that losing streak but hopefully we are out of it now.

"We asked for heroes to rise to the occasion. Adam Le Fondre was the one who got the winner and he is more than capable of scoring at any time as is Chris Dagnall as is Lee Thorpe and most of the team. We score a lot of goals from open play and we work hard on it during the week. We work on the finer arts of football which is
playing the ball on the ground when and where possible but ultimately you have to have the desire and the determination to see that plan through and that is what we have in the squad.

"Having won the game we are now into the top seven, my psychologist tells me that the easy thing is achieving the hard part is maintaining, developing and going again. That is what we have to do, we can't rest, and immediately after the game I asked the lads is that the end of our season now?

"I hope that it isn't because this is not our pinnacle and shouldn't be the top of our mountain. We still
have a long way to climb and that is what we intend to do."