Manager Brian Barry-Murphy says he’ll pay Ramsbottom United the respect they deserve by sending a strong team to the Harry Williams Riverside Stadium on Wednesday evening.
“There will be a lot of players who didn’t start on Saturday starting on Wednesday night,” said BBM.
“We feel as though we want to take a strong team to Ramsbottom and pay them the respect they deserve.
“We’re very much looking forward to it and it should be another exciting game.”
Saturday’s match against Oldham Athletic marked the halfway point in Dale’s pre-season friendly games schedule, and BBM is pleased with where the squad is as preparations continue for the start of the new campaign.
“The lads are conditioned very, very well and they’re getting fitter and stronger as we progress towards the start of the season. Their attitude has been exemplary.
“In terms of the squad, we’re almost at full strength. Ollie Rathbone and Eoghan O’Connell aren’t too far away from joining back in, so we have no major injury issues.
“Our squad is a little bit smaller than last season, and that’s something that we are aware of, so we’ve got to manage the group accordingly and try to keep everybody fit.
“A lot of the players who were involved on Saturday were young players, and we love having them there, but over the next couple of weeks we might be looking to add one or two new faces to try and make our group stronger and protect the young players so we can add them in when it’s right as the season progresses.”