KEITH HILL has called on the Rochdale board to keep the club’s most treasured assets – and give themselves a realistic shot at promotion.

Tuesday’s 2-1 win against Notts County at Spotland saw Dale climb up to second, just one point off leaders Bournemouth.

While selling the likes of Craig Dawson and Will Buckley would secure the club’s immediate financial future, Hill has called on the board to keep the squad together.

"Let’s just hope we can keep this squad together," said Hill. "Let’s hope the chairman and the board of directors make sure that we don’t sell anyone. If we want to get promoted then we have got to retain the players we’ve got. That’s what we’re looking to do.

"Last season and the season before we sold players – when January comes this time, let’s retain our better players. If we do that we have got a real chance of making a fist of it.

"In the previous two seasons, the teams who have won promotion have not sold anybody. We’ve had to do it – I know we have to do it but let’s sell at the right time.

"I want to retain all the players who are beneficial to my future and to Dave Flitcroft’s future. We’re not just in this to suffer, be great lads and for people to say ‘oh, weren’t they a great managerial team – but they had to sell all their best players so they weren’t quite as successful as expected.’"

Dawson, 19, kept experienced striker Ade Akinbiyi quiet during the win at Spotland in midweek, and while Hill is desperate to keep him until the summer at the very earliest, he feels he can eventually play at the highest level.

"Craig Dawson is a massive part of my plans and he can play at any standard he wants – he could play at the highest level," said Hill. "He has the character and the ability and the only thing he hasn’t got is experience. People have got to start looking beyond that and be braver when acquiring these sort of players."

Goals from Chris Dagnall and Chris O’Grady put paid to the Magpies on Tuesday, who took the lead via a Matt Flynn own goal. It was a spirited performance and the most pleasing aspect for Hill was the fact Dale proved they had learned to win in a different manner.

"I was really proud of the performance, of the defensive structure we had with the opportunity to counter attack. Sometimes that may seem a bit alien to us at home, but we’ve got to be able to win more than one way.

"It’s great when you can go out there all guns blazing, getting at the opposition and scoring five or six goals. But we are playing against good sides and while we are good side, I think we needed to learn how to win differently. Tuesday’s performance convinced me we can do that.

"We always look to recruit players with the right character and spirit, and if they haven’t got that, they are quickly shown the door. You can build everything on the foundation of great character. That’s what we have in our squad and we’re looking to build on it.

"It’s a shallow squad of players but a good squad. Preparing for Tuesday’s game we had just 14 professionals."