Dale were held to a 0-0 draw by Division 3 new boys Rushden and Diamonds at Spotland. Despite Dale creating loads of chances the ball just wouldn't go in the net for us.

A new face for Dale yet again today. 6 foot 3 goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann was between the sticks. The Stone Cold Steve Austin lookalike put in a good display, making a number of excellent saves to keep the visitors out. His kicking though, which Gilkes has been criticised for was somewhat topsy-turvy.

The game itself was ruined though by the refereeing performance. I don't want to go into too much detail (I'll leave that for Cullenwatch) but the guy was a dsigrace. Not only did he not give Dale a penalty but he booked Jones for diving - anyone who has seen Jones play knows he will not take a dive. He constantly allowed Rushden and Diamonds to time-waste - which was the main aim of their game today, they came for a point and they got a point.

It seems that today was just one of those days for Dale. The first 20 minutes or so we dominated and could of easily been a few goals up. Clive Platt had an early effort tipped onto the cross-bar and not soon later Jones (I think) hit a stunning shot which was also was tipped onto the bar. Then came the moment of controversy. Gary Jones stormed into the Rushden half beating his marker, he seemed to be past another when a leg lunged towards him. He tried to stay on his feet but couldn't and fell to the ground, for what was a certain penalty. The referee ignored it and waved play-on. As soon as the ball was out of play he booked Jones for diving. Disgraceful officiating.

Rushden also had a couple of good chances in the game. One in the first half after a scramble in the box, came off the strikers arm and was heading for the bottom corner before Hahnemann tipped it round the post. In the second half Hahnemann was called upon again to make two good saves, tipping each of them over the bar.

The second half pretty much belonged to Dale. The introduction of Townson at half-time got Dale going and they really should of sealed the game. Tony Ford was the biggest culprit when from five yards out he blazed over the bar with the goal gaping. With time running out the ball was again almost in the net for Dale. Gareth Griffiths rose to meet a Ford corner, he headed down into the ground so the ball looped up towards the top corner, only for the time-wasting cheat that is Billy Turley in the Rushden net to tip the ball wide.

A case really of missed chances for Dale today. At times we played well and looked like a side that deserved to be top of the league. There is no need for concern though, games like this happen every now and then. Next week sees our biggest challenge of the season though - the title decider against Luton.

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