York City vs Rochdale: Promotion Hopefuls Collide in a Crucial Encounter

Promotion hopefuls collide at the LNER Community Stadium, where York City play host to Rochdale on Tuesday evening.

The two teams sit on four points from their opening two games, and a win for either side could provide an early boost to their promotion chances.

York come into this game on the back of a 2-0 home win over Tamworth, courtesy of two second-half goals from Ollie Pearce and Billy Chadwick.

Pearce opened the scoring with a neatly-taken penalty into the bottom corner and Chadwick sealed the three points with a delightful dinked finish from just inside the box.

That win came off the back of a 1-1 draw away at Southend United, where Lenell John-Lewis netted late to salvage a point for his side.

The Minstermen will be hoping to be more competitive this year having finished 20th last season, winning just 12 of their 46 league games in the process.

Hinshelwood's Vision Takes Shape

This is Adam Hinshelwood's first full season at the club as manager after joining York in February, and with shrewd signings in the form of Ricky Aguiar of Swindon Town and Tyrese Sinclair from Rochdale, he looks to be building a side that suits his free-flowing style of play.

Rochdale's Resurgence Under McNulty

Like their opponents, Rochdale also come into this game unbeaten from their opening two games, and having finished 11th last season there is room for improvement if they are to make up last season's nine-point gap to the playoffs.

The Dale were held at home in their last game against Dagenham & Redbridge, where a composed Tarryn Allarakhia finish from inside the box salvaged a point for the hosts late on.

Rochdale's first game of the season was far more impressive however, when a Devante Rodney brace and an injury-time strike from Ian Henderson led the Dale to a resounding 3-0 win away at Boston United.

Manager Jimmy McNulty steadied the ship well in his first season after Rochdale's relegation in 2023, and now with new owners heading into the 2024-25 season his side have made a similarly positive start on the pitch.

Team News and Potential Lineups

Dipo Akinyemi was absent for York's victory over Tamworth after suffering a slight knock and missing a few days of training, but Hinshelwood has confirmed that the forward will be available for Tuesday's encounter.

With a fully-fit squad to choose from it is now a question of whether the manager wants to rotate his squad in the early weeks of the season, with Ashley Nathaniel-George and Akinyemi pushing to start in attack.

Just like their hosts, Rochdale also have no injury concerns heading into Tuesday's game.

With the attacking threat posed by Dale, it would be a surprise if their forward quartet was changed, but Tobi Adebayo-Rowling and Finlay Robertson could start if the manager opts to rotate at full-back.

York City Possible Starting Lineup

Male; Fallowfield, Howe, O'Connor, Crookes; Hunt, Batty; John-Lewis, Sinclair, Chadwick; Pearce

Rochdale Possible Starting Lineup

McNicholas; Adebayo-Rowling, Gordon, Ebanks-Landell, Robertson; East, Henry; Allarakhia, Rodney, Senior; Mitchell

Clash of Styles and Potential for an Entertaining Encounter

It is difficult to separate two teams that have made a positive start to the season, as York's impressive performance against Tamworth demonstrated their ability to control a game.

Rochdale have also impressed with a stellar display in their only away game of the season, and the Dale have enough potency in attack to cause a few headaches for the York City backline. For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.