ROCHDALE make the short journey to play Accrington Stanley tomorrow, looking to build on last weekend’s late win over high-flying Chesterfield.

Stanley have made a poor start to this season’s campaign - they have taken only one point out of the last 12 - but Dale manager Keith Hill won’t be taking them lightly.

He said: "Tomorrow’s another opportunity for us. We go into every game trying to win it, but we will give Accrington the due respect they deserve.

"It’s a chance for us to get points on the board, as it probably is for them, but we will go there full of confidence, so everything is looking all right."

Stanley boss John Coleman has brought in Tranmere Rovers’ striker Terry Gornall, 18, and Jamie Clarke and Rostyn Griffiths, both 20, from Ewood Park on loan as he looks to kick-start his season.

As is usual in a derby match, Hill knows how keen Stanley will be to beat Dale for the first time since returning to the Football League in 2006.

He said: "They have some good players and have brought in three lads on loan.

"We will be looking to improve on last week, and they will probably see the match as a good opportunity. But we also see the game as an opportunity to climb the league table.

"We are in the same position as we were last year at this stage, and to be honest I don’t think there is anybody above us whom we fear.

"We have already played Bury, we have played Wycombe, and we saw the tactics they used against us to good effect.

"I don’t fear anybody in the league. I think it’s there for any team which puts a good run together.

"Tomorrow’s game is a test. We will find out if what we have done during the week has worked or not."

Hill recently dabbled in the loan market, bringing striker Jordan Rhodes to the club from Ipswich, and he is pleased with what he has seen so far.

"Jordan has got a bright future in the game, and I hope we will get the opportunity to give him a few more league games then see if we can increase his loan deal with us.

"He has made a positive impact, and every time he gets the ball he looks as though he might score."

Another player who has caught the eye is youngster Will Buckley, inset, who seems to improve with every match.

While Hill is only too aware of his talent, he is also aware that care needs to be taken when developing young players.

He said: "Will is maturing, but we have to be very careful. He grew in stature last season and put four inches on in height, and he has got to be given time to fill out muscular wise.

"We have to be very careful in our quest for him to play football matches, because he has looked tired during the last week.

"I don't want Will Buckley to be injured, so it’s important we are very careful.

"We know he’s a talent, he has scored two, created two penalties, and made the goal against Rotherham as well. We know what he is capable of doing. The future’s bright and we have to be sure we nurture him correctly."

Hill has a full squad available apart from Mark Jones who damaged a hamstring in Wednesday’s reserve match and Lee Thorpe who is suspended.

Stanley boss John Coleman is desperate for a win tomorrow to hold off any fears that his side could be locked in a relegation battle this season.

The Reds have battled against the drop during their two seasons in League Two, and even though sides at the bottom of the table have had points deductions, Coleman refuses to believe that this guarantees his side survival against the drop.

"I don’t want to go through another season like the last, but there were signs of that creeping in against Darlington," said Coleman whose side lost 3-0 last Saturday.

"Again we lost to a team which I couldn’t say was better than us or worse than us, but they didn’t need to be better. We contributed to our own downfall.

"It is hard to take, as we have got enough experience out there to certainly acquit ourselves better than we did against Darlington.

"We have to get results full stop. We are in mid-table now, but it only takes a couple more defeats and you are in the relegation places.

"I don’t want to go through that again, but it is looking like we are sliding down the league. There is only one way to stop it and that is by winning games. We have got to get ourselves up for the next one - tomorrow."