Rochdale secured a point from their opening Papa John’s Trophy group stage tie of the 2022/23 campaign, after an entertaining encounter against Accrington Stanley at the the Wham Stadium.
After the game finished 3-3, the match went to penalties, where Stanley gained an extra point from a 4-3 shoot out win.
The home side opened up a two goal lead early in the second half thanks to goals from Sean McConville and Matt Lowe, before Rochdale turned the game on its head. James Ball halved the deficit, while substitute Ian Henderson levelled proceedings immediately after his introduction. Ethan Brierley then put Dale ahead, but Tyrese Sinclair inadvertently put the ball beyond Cieran Slicker right at the death, as Stanley took the game to penalties.
There were eight changes from Saturday’s draw with Crawley Town. Slicker, Abraham Odoh, Sam Graham, Jim McNulty, Brierley, Ball, Ray Tulloch and Connor Malley came in for Richard O’Donnell, Ben Nelson, Ethan Ebanks-Landell, Cameron John, Toumani Diagouraga, Liam Kelly, Sinclair and Henderson. There was a place on the bench for Academy under-15 player Kevin Do Santos.
The opening exchanges were relatively quiet in terms of clear cut opportunities created, but Dale arguably edged proceedings, working it forward on a number of occasions. Most notably, Ethan Brierley sent a brilliant ball over the top for Devante Rodney to run onto, but some good defending saw the home side see the ball behind as the Rochdale forward looked to get his shot away.
The first shot of the game came in the 19th minute, when former Dale loanee Ethan Hamilton fired narrowly wide of the upright from a partially cleared corner.
Five minutes later, Brierley, again, clipped ball over the top for Rodney to race onto, and he saw a shot deflected wide for a corner after cutting inside.
Seriki then had a shot blocked.
Meanwhile, Accrington had a couple of opportunities in quick succession. Matt Lowe turned an effort over the bar from close range whilst under pressure from McNulty, before White superbly denied Shaun Whalley on the line. Ryan Astley got on the end of the clearance, firing a fierce strike narrowly over from the edge of the area.
Rochdale, too, had chances before the half was out. Abraham Odoh sent a ball across the face of goal, but agonisingly, despite rushing in at the back post, Tulloch couldn’t on the end of it. Toby Savin then got a hand to Malley’s 25-yards effort, to turn it over the bar.
Neither side, however, could break the deadlock, during the competitive, entertaining half, and the sides went in level at the break.
Soon after the restart, Odoh travelled at speed up the right before firing an effort across goal and narrowly wide of the post, but it was Accrington who turned up the tempo and opened up a two goal advantage early in the half.
After Sean McConville had stuck wide from 25-yards, he went on to open the scoring sixty seconds later, in the 51st minute. Hamilton won the ball in the middle of the pitch and sent Accrington on the attack. After getting into the six-yard box, Lowe cut the ball back for McConville, just outside the area, and he superbly curled a powerful effort beyond Slicker.
Stanley extended their lead four minutes later. Slicker initially kept out McConville’s long range effort, but Lowe headed home on the rebound.
Shortly after the hour, Malley fired over the bar, before Ball halved the deficit. White chased down a ball over the top and pulled it back into the area. It came all the way through to Ball who fires beyond Savin from the edge of the area.
A double substitution followed immediately, with Tulloch and Rodney making way for Sinclair and Henderson. And it was with his first touch of the game that Henderson levelled the scoring. Ball capitalised on a mistake and played in the Dale forward, who finished from close range to equalise.
And Rochdale turned the game on its head in the 73th minute, when Brierley put the side ahead. The Dale Academy graduate coolly slotted home on the rebound after Malley’s powerful strike had initially come crashing off the bar.
Hamilton struck over from the edge of the area, before Rochdale made a further two substitutions - Diagouraga and Kelly replacing Ball and Malley.
And with five minutes left to play, Dos Santos came on to make his senior debut, as he replaced McNulty, becoming the club’s second youngest ever debutant at 15 years and five months old.
In stoppage time, Accrington’s Joe Pritchard fired narrowly wide from distance, before they equalised in unfortunate circumstances to take the game to penalties right at the death. Sinclair tried to cut out a low cross at the back post but inadvertently turned the ball past Slicker.