Rochdale boss feared ‘undeserved’ Daggers comeback

ROCHDALE boss Keith Hill said he feared Daggers’ spirited second-half comeback would deny his side all three points at Spotland on Saturday.

The hosts were cruising at 3-0 on 60 minutes, until the visitors scored twice in quick succession, both following corner kicks.

“We failed to deal with set plays from Dagenham,” he told BBC Radio Manchester.

“They nearly had a chance to salvage something from the game and I would have been really annoyed and angry had we thrown it away, because we deserved to win the game comfortably.

“We created chances in the second half, we dominated possession in the second half, but part and parcel of winning is defending set plays and we failed to do that today in the second half, we gave the opposition the opportunity to maybe salvage something from the game.

“They had the momentum going into the final 10-15 minutes of the game.

“It was difficult to manage, but we got there in the end and in three months time people will have forgot about the two set-plays we conceded and remember we got three points.”

Daggers boss John Still highlighted Rochdale’s Chris O’Grady, who made one goal and scored another, as the difference and Hill was equally full of praise for his ace.

“I thought Chris O’Grady was outstanding and I thought Brian Barry-Murphy probably had his best game for us,” he said.

“They were both excellent and I’m encouraged by the performances.

“I hope they can believe in themselves, especially going into next week’s fixture against Leyton Orient.”