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{{football squad player | no=5 | nat=England| pos=MF | name=[[Clark Keltie]]}}
{{football squad player | no=5 | nat=England| pos=MF | name=[[Clark Keltie]]}}
{{football squad player | no=6 | nat=Northern Ireland | pos=MF | name=[[Ciarán Toner]]}}
{{football squad player | no=6 | nat=Northern Ireland | pos=MF | name=[[Ciarán Toner]]}}
{{football squad player | no=7 | nat=Northern Ireland| pos=FW | name=[[Lee McEvilly]]|other=on loan to [[Barrow F.C.|Barrow]]}}
{{football squad player | no=7 | nat=Northern Ireland| pos=FW | name=[[Lee McEvilly]]}}
{{football squad player | no=8 | nat=England | pos=MF | name=[[Gary Jones (footballer born 1977)|Gary Jones]] | other=[[captain (football)|c]] }}
{{football squad player | no=8 | nat=England | pos=MF | name=[[Gary Jones (footballer born 1977)|Gary Jones]] | other=[[captain (football)|c]] }}
{{football squad player | no=9 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=[[Chris Dagnall]]}}
{{football squad player | no=9 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=[[Chris Dagnall]]}}
{{football squad player | no=10 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=[[Adam le Fondre]]}}
{{football squad player | no=10 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=[[Adam le Fondre]]}}
{{football squad player | no=11 | nat=England | pos=MF | name=[[Adam Rundle]]}}
{{football squad player | no=11 | nat=England | pos=MF | name=[[Adam Rundle]]}}
{{football squad player | no=12 | nat=England| pos=DF | name=[[Nathan D'Laryea]]|other=on loan to [[Farsley_Celtic| Farsley Celtic]]}}
{{football squad player | no=12 | nat=England| pos=DF | name=[[Nathan D'Laryea]]}}
{{football squad player | no=14 | nat=England| pos=DF | name=[[Scott Wiseman]]}}
{{football squad player | no=14 | nat=England| pos=DF | name=[[Scott Wiseman]]}}
{{football squad mid}}
{{football squad mid}}
{{football squad player | no=15 | nat=England| pos=MF | name=[[Joe Thompson]]}}
{{football squad player | no=15 | nat=England| pos=MF | name=[[Joe Thompson]]}}
{{football squad player | no=17 | nat=England| pos=FW | name=[[Jon Shaw]]|other=on loan to [[Crawley Town F.C.|Crawley Town]]}}
{{football squad player | no=17 | nat=England| pos=FW | name=[[Jon Shaw]]}}
{{football squad player | no=18 | nat=England| pos=MF | name=[[Kallum Higginbotham]]}}
{{football squad player | no=18 | nat=England| pos=MF | name=[[Kallum Higginbotham]]}}
{{football squad player | no=19 | nat=England| pos=FW | name=[[Lee Thorpe]]}}
{{football squad player | no=19 | nat=England| pos=FW | name=[[Lee Thorpe]]}}
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{{football squad player | no=21 | nat=England| pos=GK | name=[[James Spencer (footballer)|James Spencer]]|other=on loan to [[Chester City F.C.|Chester City]]}}
{{football squad player | no=21 | nat=England| pos=GK | name=[[James Spencer (footballer)|James Spencer]]|other=on loan to [[Chester City F.C.|Chester City]]}}
{{football squad player | no=23 | nat=Northern Ireland| pos=DF | name=[[Rory McArdle]]}}
{{football squad player | no=23 | nat=Northern Ireland| pos=DF | name=[[Rory McArdle]]}}
{{football squad player | no=24 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=[[Gary Madine]] | other=on loan from [[Carlisle_United_F.C. |Carlisle United]] }}
{{football squad player | no=25 | nat=England| pos=MF | name=[[Theo Coleman]]}}
{{football squad player | no=25 | nat=England| pos=MF | name=[[Theo Coleman]]}}
{{football squad player | no=27 | nat=Wales| pos=MF | name=[[Mark Jones (Welsh footballer)|Mark Jones]]}}
{{football squad player | no=27 | nat=Wales| pos=MF | name=[[Mark Jones (Welsh footballer)|Mark Jones]]}}
{{football squad player | no=30 | nat=England| pos=FW | name=[[Will Buckley (footballer)|Will Buckley]]}}
{{football squad player | no=30 | nat=England| pos=FW | name=[[Will Buckley (footballer)|Will Buckley]]}}
{{football squad player | no=29| nat=England| pos=DF | name=[[Tom Newey]]|other=on loan from[[Grimsby Town F.C.|Grimsby Town]]}}
{{football squad player | no=29| nat=England| pos=DF | name=[[Tom Newey]]|other=on loan from [[Grimsby Town F.C.|Grimsby Town]]}}
{{football squad player | no=31 | nat=England| pos=DF | name=[[Marcus Holness]]}}
{{football squad player | no=31 | nat=England| pos=DF | name=[[Marcus Holness]]}}
{{football squad player | no=34 | nat=England| pos=GK | name=[[Frank Fielding]]|other=on loan from [[Blackburn Rovers F.C.|Blackburn]]}}
{{football squad player | no=34 | nat=England| pos=GK | name=[[Frank Fielding]]|other=on loan from [[Blackburn Rovers F.C.|Blackburn]]}}

Revision as of 07:04, 28 April 2009

Rochdale
Rochdale badge
Full nameRochdale Association Football Club
Nickname(s)The Dale
Founded1907
GroundSpotland Stadium
Rochdale
England
Capacity10,249
ChairmanEngland Chris Dunphy
ManagerEngland Keith Hill
LeagueLeague Two
2007–08League Two, 5th

Rochdale Association Football Club is an English professional football club based in Rochdale, Greater Manchester. They play their home matches at Spotland Stadium and are currently managed by Keith Hill. They have an average attendance of 3,231, and are widely accepted as having one of the friendliest grounds to visit on matchdays.

They have enjoyed league football since being founder members of the Football League Division Three North in 1921. Since suffering relegation from the third to the fourth tier in 1974, they have spent the past 35 years in the English leagues basement division; longer than any other club in the division.

History

Rochdale AFC was formed in 1907. Since then they have had just one promotion and one relegation, with promotion coming in 1969 and relegation in 1974.

After the First World War the Football League was expanded and the club unsuccessfully applied to join. Finally, in 1921, Rochdale were recommended to be included in the new Third Division North, and played their first League game at home against Accrington Stanley on 27 August 1921, winning 6-3. However, this first season ended with the club bottom of the League, having to reapply for membership.

The club reached the League Cup final in 1962 - the only time a club from the bottom league division has reached the final of a major competition - where they lost to Norwich City.

1896-97 Joined Lancashire Combination
1897-98 Joined Lancashire League
1900 Left Lancashire League
1901-02 Rejoined Lancashire League
1903 Lancashire League closed down
1908-09 Rejoined Lancashire Combination in Division Two
1909-10 Promoted to Division One
1910-11 Lancashire Combination Champions
1911-12 Lancashire Combination Champions
1912-13 Joined Central League
1921-22 Founder member of Football League Division Three North
1923-24 Football League Division Three North runner-up
1926-27 Football League Division Three North runner-up
1939-40 Football League programme abandoned due to outbreak of war
1958-59 Placed in Division Three upon re-organisation
1959 Relegated to Division Four
1961-62 Football League Cup runner-up
1968-69 Promoted to Division Three
1974 Relegated to Division Four
1992-93 Division Four re-designated Division Three on formation of F.A Premier League
2001-02 Not promoted after reaching play-offs (SF: Rushden & Diamonds 2 Rochdale 2, Rochdale 1 Rushden & Diamonds 2 Agg 3-4)
2004-05 Football League Division Three renamed "League Two"
2007-08 Not promoted after reaching playoffs (Final: Stockport County 3-2 Rochdale)


Recent History

In terms of the league, they have played in the Football League's bottom division since 1974, the longest time any team has been in the bottom division of the League, with some even derisively renaming it "the Rochdale Division".[1]

The club finished bottom of the league in 1977-78, but were successful in their bid for re-election. Instead, Southport, who had finished one place above Rochdale, were demoted instead, replaced by Wigan Athletic.

Rochdale finished bottom for a second time in 1979-80, but were again re-elected - by one vote over Altrincham F.C.. In 1989-90 the club reached the fifth round of the FA Cup for the first time, but lost 1-0 to Crystal Palace.

Steve Parkin was appointed as manager in 1998, but left to take over at Barnsley in November 2001. John Hollins was appointed as his successor and, after more than two decades of mediocrity, in which the club finished in the top 10 only three times, the club finished the season in fifth place, entering the promotion play-offs where they lost to Rushden & Diamonds in the semi-finals.

The following season the club reached the fifth round of the FA Cup again the following season, but lost 3-1 at Wolves. Hollins was replaced by Paul Simpson in 2002, and Alan Buckley appointed and sacked as manager in 2003. Parkin then returned to the club as manager, until being sacked in December 2006.

His replacement, Keith Hill, who was initially appointed as caretaker-manager, led Rochdale to a 5th-placed finish in 2007-08, securing a play-off place. After beating Darlington 5-4 on penalties in the semi-finals, Rochdale reached Wembley for the first time in their history. However, despite taking the lead in the match, they lost the final 3-2 to Stockport County.

Colours

Rochdale home colours, used until the 2006/07 season.

Rochdale's current home colours are black and blue shirts, white shorts and blue socks, which is a totally new kit introduced for the 08/09 season. Previously, Dale's usual colours were all-blue, which was introduced in 1949. Prior to this, Rochdale wore black and white stripes, which was influenced by the strong Newcastle United side of 1907 (the year Rochdale were formed), the strip which they adopted for their centenary season in 2007.

Rochdale's centenary kit, used in the 2007/08 season.

This black and white kit was re-introduced in the 07/08 season as the one-off centenary kit; the new Internazionale-influenced design is an amalgamation of both the striped kit and the blue kit to herald the second century of Dale's existence.

Other kits have included white shirts with black shorts, white shirts with blue shorts and a blue shirt with white sleeves. Current Rochdale kits and training gear are manufactured by Nike.

The Dale have had sponsored shirts since 1983, the most notable sponsor being Carcraft. They are currently sponsored by MMC Estates, a housing company that currently is working in the Spodden Valley area. Other former sponsors include All-in-One Garden Centre, Smith Metals, Carcraft and Keytech.

Rochdale's away kit is white shirts with blue shorts. Other historical away kits have included yellow, teal, green and red.

Badge

The club crest / logo used by Rochdale AFC focuses on a variant of the arms of the former County Borough of Rochdale.

The coat of arms, based on those of the local and reputed Rachdale family with certain additions, was granted to the Borough by Heralds College in 1857. At its centre, a shield shows a sack of wool and a cotton plant, representing the local wool and cotton industries. Around the edge of the shield sit eight martlets (birds). These are taken from the Rachdale family coat of arms (mentioned above) and are widely used on heraldic devices. Above the shield and helm (in the position technically know as the 'crest' in heraldry) more local industry representations are made by the inclusion of a fleece of wool (suspended by a band) and the iron centre of an old mill-stone (known as a mill-rind).

A motto below the shield reads; 'Crede Signo'. Roughly translated this means; `Believe in the sign`.

The blazon (official heraldic description) for the arms reads as follows:

'Argent a woolpack encircled by two branches of the cotton tree flowered and conjoint proper; a bordure sable charged with eight martlets of the field; and for a crest on a wreath of the colours a mill-rind sable and above a fleece argent banded or.'

When, in 1974, Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council was formed (taking over from Rochdale County Borough Council and five other Borough / Urban District Councils) a new coat of arms was created and awarded for Council Use. Rochdale AFC, however, continued (and continues today) to adopt the old Rochdale County Borough arms.

Stadium

Rochdale play their home matches at Spotland, which has a capacity of 10,249. The stadium was built exclusively for the Dale in 1920, but since 1988 the ground has been jointly owned by the football club, Rochdale Council and Rochdale Hornets. However it is largely expected that Rochdale will buy Hornets' share of the ground.

Rochdale FC
Spotland
Sandy Lane
Rochdale
OL11 5DR


Admission prices at Spotland Stadium are as follows:

Home Fans:

Main Stand - Adults £19, Concessions £12, Under 7's Free
T.D.S Stand - Adults £17, Concessions £10, Under 7's Free
Family Area - Adults £15, Under 16's £5, Under 7's Free (maximum 3 children per adult)
Thwaites Beer Stand (Terrace) - Adults £14, Concessions £9, Under 7's Free

Away Fans:

Westrose Leisure Stand (Willbutts Lane) - Adults £20, Concessions £12

Concessions apply to Over 65's and students in full time education.

Current squad

As of 22 March 2009.

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK England ENG Sam Russell
2 DF England ENG Simon Ramsden
3 DF England ENG Tom Kennedy
4 DF England ENG Nathan Stanton
5 MF England ENG Clark Keltie
6 MF Northern Ireland NIR Ciarán Toner
7 FW Northern Ireland NIR Lee McEvilly
8 MF England ENG Gary Jones (c)
9 FW England ENG Chris Dagnall
10 FW England ENG Adam le Fondre
11 MF England ENG Adam Rundle
12 DF England ENG Nathan D'Laryea
14 DF England ENG Scott Wiseman
No. Pos. Nation Player
15 MF England ENG Joe Thompson
17 FW England ENG Jon Shaw
18 MF England ENG Kallum Higginbotham
19 FW England ENG Lee Thorpe
20 DF England ENG Raphale Evans (on loan to Leigh Genesis)
21 GK England ENG James Spencer (on loan to Chester City)
23 DF Northern Ireland NIR Rory McArdle
25 MF England ENG Theo Coleman
27 MF Wales WAL Mark Jones
30 FW England ENG Will Buckley
29 DF England ENG Tom Newey (on loan from Grimsby Town)
31 DF England ENG Marcus Holness
34 GK England ENG Frank Fielding (on loan from Blackburn)

For notable past players, please see Rochdale A.F.C. players

Player Records

  • Most league goals in a season - 44 Albert Whitehurst (1926-27)
  • Most league goals in total - 129 Reg Jenkins (1964-73)
  • Most league appearances - 323 Gary Jones

Club Records

  • Fewest league wins in a season - 2 1973–74
  • Most Points gained in a season - 80 2007–08 Football League Two
  • Player of the season - 4 Gary Jones
  • Most goals in one season - 24 Grant Holt, 24 Reg Jenkins

References

  1. ^ Time to escape the 'Rochdale Division' Rochdale Observer, 5 August 2005

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