Dale picked up only their third away win of the season when they won 1-0 away at Hartlepool. The win came courtesy of a Michael Holt goal.

Dale picked up only their third away win of the season when they won 1-0 away at Hartlepool. The win came courtesy of a Michael Holt goal, but Dale had to withstand some late pressure from the home side to secure all three points.

 The Dale fans were singing the Great Escape for the last five minutes at Hartlepool today, which was quite appropriate as that was exactly what Dale had achieved. This was probably the most open game that Dale have been involved in this season with chances going begging at both ends, and it was quite a surprise that the game only had one goal (maybe not when you consider the quality of the finishing).

Dale began the game with just the one change from Saturday's game. Paul Carden coming into the starting eleven to replace Andy Farrell who had to be content with a place on the bench. Dale started very brightly and could well have gone one up within the very first minute. Following some good work down the right wing by Carden, who caused all sorts of problems for the left back who was dreadful, a corner was won. Monington came very close from the resultant corner.

The Hartlepool defence looked at utter shambles and it looked like Dale could have won by a cricket score. Dale looked dangerous on most attacks, but the ball would not fall to the right man. As the half progressed Dale allowed the opponents to come back into the match, and they looked the more likely to score. At one point, it was only a classic Alan Johnson tackle which prevented a goal. The first half was end to end stuff though, mostly as a result of mistakes. Dale came close through a couple of long range efforts, notably from Ian Bryson. Overall it was a pretty even first half with both teams feeling unlucky not to be leading.

The second half was a much more subdued half, with the home side stepping up a gear. Dale attacks were not as frequent as they had been in the first half, and at the other end, Neil Edwards was relieved to see the ball go past the far post a couple of times.

Dale had a great chance to take the lead following some good stuff down the right wing, and the ball found its way to an unmarked Robbie Painter who had a glorious chance, but blasted the ball seemingly yards over the bar. Painter was soon substituted by manager Graham Barrow when loanee Michael Holt, who missed Saturday's game through flu, entered the proceedings. It was not long before Holt managed to make his mark when he headed a cross over the Hartlepool keeper into the back of the net. This led to scenes of jubilation behind the goal at the other end, where the Dale fans were housed. All that was left was for Dale to play out the final few minutes to secure only their third away victory of the season. The ref did his best to level things up by adding on loads of time, which he managed to find from somewhere. Dale managed to hold out but it was a struggle. Edwards made a couple of superb saves, where the Hartlepool forwards were quite forceful in their efforts. At one point, Edwards was beaten, but Monington made amends for the other day, when he cleared of the line with a desperate lunge. There was a spell where it was total "backs to the wall" style defending. Dale were happy to concede corners, anything which got the ball away and gave them some brief respite. Eventually the ref blew his whistle, leading to scenes of joy both on and off the pitch. The players probably celebrating more than those in the rink end behind the goal, but they were keen to show their appreciation of the Dale fans who sang their hearts out for the them nervy final few minutes.

It was a win that Dale probably did not quite deserve. That is something we must do more of, if we are to achieve anything. We rode our luck at times, especially in the second half. However, it should have been all over in the first half, if we had took all of our chances. (Heard that last bit before anywhere?)

Dale: Edwards, Sparrow, Barlow, Hill, Monington, Johnson, Carden, Painter(Holt), Morris, Bryson, Peake. Subs not used: Stuart and Farrell.

Photo: Action Images

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