Brooklyn Bailey was elated following his second hat-trick in the space of a week.
The Youth Team were 5-1 winners against Accrington Stanley in the EFL Youth Alliance League on Tuesday thanks to a hat-trick from Brooklyn Bailey and a brace from Oscar Kelly.
"I believe that the team as a whole played very well. We had good structure, and everyone did their jobs and worked hard for each other," said Bailey.
"Each player gave one hundred per cent, and I couldn’t be any more grateful for their performances today."
Bailey bagged his second hat-trick in a week following his trio of goals against Salford City last week in Dale's 6-1 win.
The 18-year-old scored a quick-fire double before half-time at the Stanley Sports Hub, both from the penalty spot, to give Dale a 2-1 lead before adding a third shortly after the break.
"It’s made my day again. The opposition tried to get in my head when I was taking the penalties, but I remained composed, pure tunnel vision, and I put them in the goal.
"It’s a great feeling to score a hat-trick. It's great when you just score one goal, and to do it three times twice is unbelievable."
Accrington had only dropped five points in ten games prior to their game with Lee Thorpe's side, with them also occupying second place in the league table.
"It’s great for us," commented Bailey.
"It’s given us more hope in the league. Hopefully, now we can climb the league table and keep improving.
"We’ve just got to keep doing what we’re doing."