A single goal separated the two sides on Saturday
Ten man Rochdale continued in fine form on Saturday as they saw off Macclesfield with a single goal.Connor Martin’s first half strike separated the two sides on the day, but it could have been more as Dale had one cleared off the line, and another denied by the woodwork.
Rochdale took the lead through Martin on 24 minutes, and despite going down to ten men shortly after the interval following Darcy O’Connor's sending off for a last man challenge, tactical changes ensured Dale stood strong to see out the match.
Youth team Manager Chris Beech gave his thoughts after the game: “It was a good performance against a very organised and competitive Macclesfield Town side. I'm delighted for Connor Martin who scored his first goal for the club with a controlled side footed finish. Connor is a very good player technically and I’ve recently challenged him to have more of an impact in games with assists and goals, and today that benefitted us all so I congratulate him.
“On another day we could have more but overall we did well, especially after going down to ten men with Darcy O’Connor adjudged to have brought down Macclesfield’s centre forward as the last man. This resulted in a tactical change where I brought on Jonny Spittle in the centre of defence at the expense of Connor Martin. So not only did Connor win us the game, he also took one for the team. Well done!”
Rochdale: Ashley, Hill, O’Connor, Antoine-Clark, Tanser, Allen, Cannon, Camps, Martin, Logan, Whitehall.
Subs: Diba Musangu, Rabiu, Masirika, Spittle.
League Table
| North West | Pld | W | D | L | For | Agt | GD | Pts |
1 | Preston North End | 13 | 9 | 1 | 3 | 38 | 20 | +18 | 28 |
2 | Rochdale | 12 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 33 | 13 | +20 | 24 |
3 | Carlisle United | 12 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 27 | 15 | +12 | 22 |
4 | Wrexham | 11 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 20 | 9 | +11 | 22 |
5 | Burnley | 10 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 30 | 15 | +15 | 21 |
6 | Walsall | 11 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 27 | 14 | +13 | 21 |
7 | Bury | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 22 | 19 | +3 | 19 |
8 | Port Vale | 12 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 16 | -4 | 16 |
9 | Macclesfield Town | 12 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 13 | 16 | -3 | 15 |
10 | Shrewsbury Town | 11 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 12 | 16 | -4 | 15 |
11 | Oldham Athletic | 10 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 12 | -4 | 15 |
12 | Blackpool | 11 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 19 | 34 | -15 | 13 |
13 | Fleetwood Town | 11 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 18 | 21 | -3 | 9 |
14 | Morecambe | 11 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 15 | 32 | -17 | 6 |
15 | Accrington Stanley | 10 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 34 | -25 | 5 |
16 | Tranmere Rovers | 11 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 10 | 27 | -17 | 1 |