The APL Prediction League & Preview –
RochdaleI guess there was an element of doubt this fixture may not go ahead, Rochdale have lost a couple of fixtures with an unfit pitch recently, but there is talk that the weekend cup game against Spurs which is live on TV, has seen a certain amount of work done on the pitch, so it should be ok.
I did catch a glimpse of their game with Millwall I think it was, and the pitch looked like a proper throwback to the seventies with sand everywhere and will probably be on a par with the Oldham pitch from last week, and we all you how badly we coped with that, but to be fair the way we are playing, it doesn’t really matter that much what type of surface we are playing on.
At the time of writing this article, I see that Gilbey has undergone surgery and will be out until next season, not the best bit of news we’ve had to add to the catalogue injuries already suffered, but it happens to most teams, and there is no point crying about it and using it as an excuse, that unfortunately is how the cookie crumbles.
There does seem to be a bit more positive info about Chuks, I spoke to him on Saturday in the prawn sandwich area, and he thought Fleetwood may be a distinct possibility.
Right a short edition this week, lets get on with the stats for Rochdale.
THE STORY SO FARRochdale are currently at the foot of the table in 24th place, but with as many as 5 games in hand on some relegation rivals because of cancellations and a good cup run, and that could lift them out of the bottom four, but I would venture its highly unlikely.
Their League record is as follows,
PLAYED 28, WON 5, DRAWN 10, LOST 13, GF 29 & GA 40, with 25 POINTS.
Form at a Glance –
LLLWLThe following are their
HOME League results in chronological order.
Rochdale 1 Scunthorpe 1
Rochdale 0 Bury 0
Rochdale 0 Blackburn 3
Rochdale 2 Doncaster 1
Rochdale 3 Gillingham 0
Rochdale 0 Rotherham 1
Rochdale 2 Northampton 2
Rochdale 1 Bristol Rovers 0
Rochdale 2 Peterborough 0
Rochdale 0 Oxford 0
Rochdale 1 Walsall 1
Rochdale 1 Blackpool 2
That gives them a
HOME LEAGUE record of
PLAYED 12, WON 4, DRAWN 5, LOST 3, GF 13 & GA 11, and that includes 5 clean sheets.
THE MANAGERKeith John Hill born in Bolton aged 48 years.
As a defender he started his playing career in 1987 at Blackburn Rovers making 96 appearances, he also played for Plymouth (123), Rochdale (154), Cheltenham (5), Wrexham (2), and finally Morecambe (20).
In total he made 410 appearances scoring 11 goals.
He began his managerial career in 2006 at Rochdale, and ironically his first game in charge was against us, but I’m pleased to say we won 2-1. Five years later he moved to Barnsley after 231 games in charge, despite turning the job down a few months earlier.
A woeful spell at Barnsley saw him sacked, winning just 19 of 75 games and losing 41.
Within weeks he once again took over at Rochdale where he has been in charge for over four and a half years, overseeing 275 games.
Career stats add up like this,
GAMES 581, WON 234, DRAWN 139, LOST 208, that’s a WIN RATIO of 40.30%.
THE GROUNDSpotlands is approximately 170 miles from Stadium MK, directions for
SAT NAV OL11 5DR.
Parking is poor, with visiting fans having to use street parking, be careful some of it is restricted to residents only, and you will likely get a ticket if you abuse the parking restrictions, my advice is get there early.
Away supporters are housed on one side of the Willbutts Lane Stand, where around 1,500 fans can be housed, so I make that about 10 seats each. If demand requires it, then the whole of this stand can be given to visiting fans increasing the allocation to 3,650.
The stand is normally shared with home supporters with away fans being seated towards the Sandy Lane End. The view of the action and facilities within, are both pretty good. The acoustics are excellent, so away fans can really make some noise from within it, our last visit here was certainly very enjoyable with some great banter singing with oppo fans.
But be warned, If Rochdale do score, then 'Samba de Janeiro' blasts out around the ground from the PA system.
Away pubs look likely to be Studd’s & the Ratcliffe Arms, or for the real ale fans the Cemetery Hotel is worth a visit, away fans are also allowed into the Rochdale FC Social Club.
The pies in the ground are superb as is the chip shop near the away end, it gets very busy but worth the wait.
Those making the trip by train should note it’s a 35-40-minute walk from the station.
SHOOTERS BOOTSIan Henderson with 14 goals in all competitions.
FORMER MANAGERSRochdale have had 42 managers in their 111-year history, most notable incumbents include Harry Catterick, Bob Stokoe, Jimmy Greenhoff, Eddie Gray and John Hollins.
FORMER PLAYERSLee Duxbury, George Eastham, David Fairclough, Adam le Fondre, Clive Platt, Brett Ormerod, Jordan Rhodes to name just a few, but not one George Williams.
FAMOUS FANSTommy Cannon (Comedian) and Lisa Stansfield (Singer).
Incidentally in a survey from a couple of years back published in the Daily Mirror, Rochdale are said to have the longest suffering fans in English Football since the formation of the Football League back in 1888.
I’m sure you know the song, “a Hundred Years and you’ve won **** all”, could really apply to the men from Spotlands, who hold the record for the longest spell in the bottom flight of over 80 years.
CURRENT MATCH ODDSRochdale
23/20 (Stan James) Draw
5/2 (Bet Victor) MK Dons
11/4 (Boyle Sports)
MATCHDAY MASCOTWho knows why, but its Desmond the Dragon.
LAST TIME ROUNDSaturday 16th September – MK Dons 3 Rochdale 2
Team – Nicholls, Williams, Wootton, Golbourne, Ariyibi, Gilbey, Nesbitt (Seager), Tshibola (Agard), Upson (Cisse), Brittain, Sow
Unused Subs – Sietsma, Lewington, McGrandles, Muirhead
Goals – Inman 8’, Ariyibi 41’ & 41’, Done 42’, Seager 84’.
Referee – Gavin Ward (3 Yellows)
Attendance – 7,670
League Position at the time of the Fixture – Dons 13th Dale 21st
HEAD 2 HEAD2017/18 – MK Dons 3 Rochdale 2 (Ariyibi 2, Seager)
2016/17 – MK Dons 2 Rochdale 2 (Agard, Reeves)
2016/17 – Rochdale 0 MK Dons 1 (Wootton)
2014/15 – Rochdale 2 MK Dons 3 (Carruthers, Bowditch, Powell)
2014/15 – MK Dons 2 Rochdale 2 (Grigg, Green)
2011/12 – Rochdale 1 MK Dons 2 (O’Shea, Bowditch)
2011/12 – MK Dons 3 Rochdale 1 (Adam Smith, MacDonald, Beevers)
2010/11 – Rochdale 1 MK Dons 4 (Vine, Powell, S Baldock, Gleeson)
2010/11 – MK Dons 1 Rochdale 1 (Doumbe)
2007/08 – MK Dons 0 Rochdale 1
2007/08 – Rochdale 3 MK Dons 2 (Gallen 2)
2006/07 – Rochdale 5 MK Dons 0
2006/07 – MK Dons 2 Rochdale 1 (McLeod, Own Goal)
YOU’VE GOT NO HISTORYFormed in 1907 and nicknamed the Dale, they were accepted into the Football League in 1921. Since then, the club has remained in the bottom two professional divisions of English Football.
The team has achieved promotion three times – in 1969, 2010 and 2014, and relegation in 1959, 1974 and 2012.
The 1959 relegation followed the 1958 restructuring which saw the combination of the two Third Division sections into the Third Division and Fourth Division. In the restructuring, Rochdale managed to secure a spot in the Third Division but were relegated at the end of the season to the now lowest Fourth Division.
Although the club has never won a competition since joining the League, they have the distinction of playing in the final of the League Cup in 1962, the first of only two teams from the lowest tier to have done so.
Rochdale has participated in the Football League playoffs on three occasions.
In 2002, they lost 4–3 on aggregate to Rushden & Diamonds. In 2008, they went through to Wembley Stadium, defeating Darlington in the semi-final 5–4 on penalties after a 3–3 draw after extra time over two legs. Ben Muirhead scored the crucial penalty for Rochdale.
However, despite scoring the first goal at the Wembley final, Rochdale suffered a 3–2 loss to Stockport County.
In 2009, Rochdale lost 2–1 on aggregate to Gillingham in the playoff semi-finals.
PREDICTIONThat’s it for this game, all the usual rules apply, don’t forget to make your predictions clear, predicting a score, and the first Don’s scorer or if you prefer NO DONS SCORER.
You can only predict one player, and you are not allowed to predict an own goal.
Deadline as always 1 hour prior to kick off.See you at Rochdale.
WellDonExample Rochdale 1 MK Dons 1
MKDFGS – Ugboots
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