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Thread | Thank you Fixture Computer!
at 09:43 21 Jun 2017
Looks like my first Dale game will be Southend away at the start of September and I will be able to get to Milton Keynes a mere fortnight later. Then a fortnight later it's Wimbledon!
Not long to have to wait before I can get to my first few games.
Charlton is November, Gillingham is January, Northampton is February and Peterborough and Oxford are April. A nice fairly even spread. |
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Thread | I'm finding that I am being strangely sucked in by the charm of Rochdale
at 09:41 13 Jun 2017
I find myself anxiously looking forward to the fixtures being released, yet not for Ipswich but for Rochdale. What is going on!
I've been an Ipswich season ticket holder for 34 of my 37 years. Seen them away at 50 + league grounds. Admittedly I am excited for the Norwich games but that is about it.
Cherish what you've got people. When certain owners and managers can make you almost not even care about following your own team you know it's bad. It's been coming for 2-3 years and we've dropped to 8,000 season ticket holders. Crowds will be down from 16,000 last season (only 13,000 in the ground for most part as 3,000 season ticket holders were not turning up) to around 11,000 if we are lucky next.
Yet in total contrast to being sat bored, watching McCarthy hoofball at a club that sees fans as customers to exploit with the highest prices for the cheapest possible service, I cannot wait to start following Dale next season. I fully anticipate that I'll see as many Rochdale games as Ipswich ones.
For the first time last season I missed 3 or 4 home games which I'd paid for, when I live 15 minutes from Portman Road, because I simply couldn't be bothered. I'd have considered that unimaginable a few years ago.
I may not be a Rochdale fan, but your club has at least reignited my excitement for going to football. So thank you! |
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Thread | Rochdale rivalries
at 12:16 9 Jun 2017
I'm genuinely interested in the relationship you guys have with other clubs in the North West.
Being an Ipswich fan we hate Norwich and they hate us and we are 40 miles apart. Teams like Colchester are closer to us and while they hate us we've already wanted them to do well as they were no threat. Likewise Norwich have a similar relationship with Peterborough.
You guys have an abundance of clubs though. So I'd be fascinated to know how you feel about Bury, Oldham, Bolton, Blackburn, Burnley, Accrington, Wigan, Stockport Man City, Man Utd and any others in the mix. Which clubs would you say you 'hate' (in a footballing sense), dislike, don't mind or even like to do well?
Have you ever cared about Man City or Man Utd because they were in a completely different league since always and were teams like Stockport fierce rivals who are or aren't still considered to be because they are so far down the pyramid.
Also, Ipswich have a real history with both Sheffield United (known as the Norwich of the North) after a couple of very violent playoff matches (played them two years running) and Bolton (same thing - they kicked us off the park in the playoffs two years running). Any other teams Dale have a big rivalry with that aren't geographically - Notts County perhaps? [Post edited 9 Jun 2017 12:19]
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Thread | NEW SIGNING KLAXON - 12PM ANNOUNCEMENT
at 11:39 7 Jun 2017
Any whispers on who it might be?
Which positions do you guys need strengthening?
I'm going to guess it's an out of contract midfielder from a side that was in League One last season. [Post edited 7 Jun 2017 11:40]
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Thread | Any FIFA fanatics amongst us?
at 15:44 6 Jun 2017
As I mentioned in another thread the other day I am currently in the midst of a journey of taking Dale from League One to become the kings of Europe.
For anyone even slightly interested, my first season ended with me blowing automatic promotion on the last day having been 5 points clear of 3rd with 4 games left. It was a three way battle all season with Wigan Athletic and Charlton Athletic and I ended up in the playoffs.path of Oliver Rathbone to lash home the leveller. A nervy extra time period could produce no more goals and so it went to penalties.
Josh Lillis saved two of the four kicks he faced with Noble-Lazarus and Vincenti scoring, whilst Camps and Henderson having their efforts saved. Then Lillis made a cracking stop from Ward and we had the chance to win promotion to the Championship. Up stepped Rathbone, the hero already, to secure his status as a legend of Spotland with an absolute belter down the middle.
The board decided we needed to invest in youth and avoid relegation but I wasn't having that. I was after a top half finish. I allowed Henderson to leave and brought in a young striker from Charlton for £500,000. Karlen Ahearn-Grant. My other signing was Mark Marshall from Bradford and I brought 4 or 5 players in from the youth team.
They say it's the best way to go up right! Well after 46 matches and around 15 hours of playing FIFA I ended up with Blackburn Rovers over two legs. I lost 1-0 at Ewood Park and was all set to go out when Callum Camps tapped in a cross on 85 minutes to take the tie into extra time and I ended up winning 3-0 to get to Wembley.
There I faced Rotherham United, who I'd beaten twice in the regular season and so fancied my chances. On 73 minutes they broke the deadlock and it looked like I was consigned to another week of late nights trying to get out of the third tier.
However, in INJURY TIME, a lucky deflection found Ian Henderson who laid it into the
I lost 4 of my first 6 without winning and was humped 5-1 at home by Brighton. I feared the worst but eventually tinkered with the system and things got better. Then better still. Then even better.
After 44 games I had just climbed to 5th, into the playoffs for the first time all season. All I needed to do was to take 3 points from the final 6. I drew both. On the last day of the season I was 1-0 up against Wigan and seemingly in the playoffs when late on Tim Chow struck from 25 yards and completely shafted us. Worst still as I pressed for the winner Chow bundled over my young striker Ed Mason and the ref waived play on.
Chow was the new villain of Spotland, Birmingham took the final play off place and I, still playing at 4am, was tired and most vexed. The star of the season was Ahearne-Grant who ended with 16 goals.
So to the 3rd season. Lillis departed and in came a new keeper from Germany, whose name I cannot recall but something like Hause Altotag. I signed Josh Ginnelly and Fred Onyadinma and promoted yet more youths.
This season has been incredible so far. Rochdale are top scorers and have the best defence. It started with a three way battle between us, Hull City and Bristol City. The Tigers slightly faded and Norwich City of all teams came on strong.
After 29 games Rochdale are top of the Championship, 3 ahead of Bristol City and 7 ahead of Norwich City. I won 3-1 at Norwich in a top of the table clash, but in late January I have just drawn 1-1 at home in the league with a last minute leveller and then lost 3-2 at Carrow Road in the FA Cup 4th Round.
Other highlights include Ahearn-Grant on 19 goals already, with 17 games left to play and a 1-0 loss at Chelsea in the League Cup where I played the youths, battered them (11 shots to 3 and 56% possession) but lost to the luckiest, most deflected Diego Costa shot.
I'll complete the season tonight. All being well Rochdale will then be in the Premier League and my 3 year plan of top half, Europe, Champions League will come into play. I'm going to keep going until Rochdale are Champions of Europe. My aim is to win the CL within 15 years.
That's if the board don't sack me! They are genuinely delighted with the league progress but keep getting annoyed that I am failing to meet targets (anyone else had this?). They've asked me to make a profit of £17m this season (in the Championship) and the squad is only worth £9m!
So I would need to sell the entire squad, replace them with youth players and somehow get 30,000 into Spotland every week!
I'll post my progress on this thread if one person shows any kind of interest! Lol.
CURRENT TEAM (January 2019)
GK Altotag (Signed)
LB Will Mason (Youth)
CB McGahey
CB Canavan
RB Edwards (Youth)
DM Rathbone
LM Ginelly (Signed)
RM Camps
LF Noble-Lazarus
CF Ahearne-Grant (Signed)
RF Onyedinma (Signed)
SUBS
Logan, Jones (Youth), Harris (Youth), Vincenti, Thompson, Jones (Signed), Ed Mason (Youth) [Post edited 6 Jun 2017 16:34]
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Thread | Greetings from an unglory hunter
at 16:05 2 Jun 2017
Hello everyone,
I'm Dan. I've been a fan of this forum for some time now and regularly have a look to see what's going on with your fine club.
To explain what I am doing here. Two things. I'm an Ipswich fan. I've also had a soft spot for Rochdale for many years going back to all sorts of football manager games where I would always choose Dale.
I work in the Football Industry but have to admit to hating so many of the modern elements. Normally I would get sympathy from most football fans for supporting a team that's done little for almost 16 straight seasons in the same division, but I fear many of you may consider that nothing based on your many years of life in the fourth tier.
The Premier League and to some extent the Championship have turned into money hungry monsters and for me League One is the highest of what I'd consider the 'pure' divisions, where family clubs still exist, where more players play for the love of the game than the wage packet, where proper grounds exist instead of lifeless bowls, you get the idea.
Like a huge number of Ipswich fans I am not renewing my season ticket next year. Without boring anyone who doesn't want to know too much, we have an invisible owner with no ambition who is happy to keep a manager the fans all want gone because he's the best man to keep us in the division on the criteria we have of not bothering to invest any more money other than to keep the club afloat because we've missed the boat.
I've had a season ticket for decades but next year I will be going to as many other games as possible, taking in a lot of new grounds and I've decided to adopt Dale and follow your club to as many of your away games in the Midlands / South East / South West and I'll head to Spotland for a few games as well.
Whether it was Football Manager, LMA, FIFA, I was always drawn to Rochdale. I don't mean this patronisingly but you were always one of the smaller clubs in the bottom division with no promotions to look back on and the smaller crowds, so I always liked to take you guys through the divisions. I've even won a Champions League with you! Even right now I am faithfully committed to a manager career on FIFA with Dale (Just missed out on the Championship playoffs on the last day of my second season)
It's interesting to see the grumbles on here, the things that bother you as fans and the issues, which in many ways differ to the ones at Ipswich. I genuinely feel right now fans like yourselves are the lucky ones. A decent manager, a club that's enjoying some of it's better times and still at a low enough level not to have been corrupted by mercenaries (not of the level ITFC have anyway) and with a lot of people around the club and community that deeply care about RAFC, something that's no longer true of Ipswich.
Spotland reminds me of everything football used to be. I know it may not seem like you have it that great when you look at the likes of Hudderfield, Bournemouth and what other clubs have gone onto achieve, but I seriously envy a lot of what you have.
Anyway, thought it would be good to say hello before I get engaged in the odd thread or two. I hope nobody takes offence to my adoption of your club. Many of us will be staying away from ITFC whilst Evans and McCarthy is there and whilst that might seem strange and that we aren't supporting our club, if you knew the ins and outs you'd know that season ticket holders of 50 years have not renewed this year.
So for the foreseeable future I'll be experiencing League One. Although in 12 months time I may well be doing so with Ipswich!
Would be great to chat with you, learn the best places to eat around Spotland, just how much you hate Bury and Oldham and to what degree, whether you feel Camps and NML will cut it in the Championship and which players you've been linked to. Ipswich had Reece Brown and he was abysmal, but not fully fit or played in his natural position so I'll reserve judgment. If anyone can get him playing it's Keith Hill (who would be the perfect replacement for Mick McCarthy if our owner knew anything about football). [Post edited 2 Jun 2017 16:21]
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