 Thursday, 6th Jan 2022 11:53 by AtThePeake It takes something special to be considered the most bizarre signing of Steve Eyre's short, confusing era at Rochdale AFC, but that unwanted moniker surely goes to Scottish defender Marc Twaddle. Position: Left-back/Centre-back Arrived from: Falkirk Played : 2011-2012 Appearances : 2 Goals : 0 Left for: Ayr United Whenever I think of Marc Twaddle, I do wonder what he must think of Rochdale AFC and whether he holds any resentment towards the club after his move south of the border in 2011 backfired somewhat. Twaddle had started his career in his hometown with Rangers, but never made an appearance before departing to Falkirk in 2003. He certainly made an impact with The Bairns, scoring one of only two goals in this spell in a famous 1-0 win over his former club - condemning the Teddy Bears to their first defeat to Falkirk in over 30 years. After 24 appearances, Twaddle left the Falkirk Stadium to join Partick Thistle, where he was a regular starter for two seasons, racking up 63 appearances and becoming something of a fans' favourite in the process through his high work-rate and ball-playing ability. When he returned to Falkirk in 2009, Twaddle was a more rounded player and was ready to establish himself as a first-teamer, which he did, scoring three more goals in 64 appearances to attract attention from south of the border. Clearly looking to add a left-footed centre-back to his ranks, Steve Eyre was seemingly delighted to capture Twaddle in the summer transfer window ahead of the 2011/2012 campaign, praising his versatility and claiming that Dale had beaten Championship suitors to the signing of the Glaswegian. However, something was clearly off about this signing when we didn't see Twaddle feature until the latter stages of a 2-0 derby defeat at Oldham a few weeks into the season where he was introduced to try and steady the backline following the dismissal of Neal Trotman, and then not again until an EFL Trophy game against Walsall in October. Rumours were that Eyre hadn't even seen Twaddle play and had signed him on a recommendation as his left-footed centre-back, only to find he was indeed a left-back and was perhaps lacking the physicality required to play as a central defender in League One. Those remained his only appearances under Eyre and although there was talk of injuries, it seemed that neither the former Manchester City youth coach nor his eventual replacement John Coleman thought Twaddle to be up to scratch to feature in an underperforming team. His only other appearance for Dale came as a left-back in a 3-2 win over Exeter City in April, with relegation already all but confirmed and Coleman taking the opportunity to have a look at a handful of fringe and youth players in his squad. Twaddle's contract was cancelled that summer just 12 months into a two year deal and he quickly returned to Scotland to join Ayr United of Division Two, where he made 17 appearances and scored one goal in one season. From there, Twaddle dropped into non-league to join sixth-tier side Irvine Meadow. He remained with the Ayrshire club from 2013 through to 2016 before ending his semi-professional football career to concentrate on other work commitments. Photo: Action Images Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.
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