Liam Kelly says he feels good after playing two games in quick succession following return from injury.
The midfielder had been side lined through injury since early November, after picking up an injury in Dale’s Emirates FA Cup tie at Bristol Rovers.
He returned for the trip to Doncaster Rovers in our final game of 2022 and started the draw at Barrow on Monday.
“It feels good to be back out there,” said Kelly.
“I had an eight-week injury, which was new to me – it’s the first one I’ve had in my career really.
“It’s nice to be back out there helping the boys. I’m still trying to get my match sharpness, but I’m feeling really good.
“Since the gaffer has come in, every game I’ve been fit for, I’ve played in. That shows the trust he and Chaddy [Nick Chadwick] have in me.”
The 27-year-old says the squad feel the responsibility in getting Dale away from the bottom of the League Two table.
“All the boys feel responsibility [to perform], whether you start or you’re on the bench. As a collective, we’ve got to take responsibility for the position we’re in.
“Whatever eleven goes out there and whatever subs come on, we’ve got to take more responsibility for ourselves because the gaffer can put us on the pitch but it’s us that have to do the work.
“Hopefully one win can change it around. We know how good the crowd can be when we’ve won games here, they can really help us. We need to start winning games.
“We’ve been alright away from home and had some good results, but we need to sort our home form out, and that starts on Saturday.
“No one wants a relegation on their CV as a footballer or a member of staff. It would probably be the worst thing possible for the club to go down. It’s on ourselves, the players and staff we have in the building, to make sure it doesn’t happen.
“It doesn’t affect just us, it affects people that work at the club and the community, etc., it’s their livelihoods. If you speak to every player, they’re determined for it not to happen.”