The Shaymen hosted Rochdale at The Shay Stadium on Tuesday evening and appeared destined for defeat after falling 2–0 behind in the 85th minute. With time running out, it looked as though Town were set to suffer another disappointing loss. However, they refused to give in. Halifax pulled a goal back in the 87th minute to spark late hope, and deep into stoppage time Tommy Lavery struck a dramatic equaliser in the 92nd minute, sending the home fans into jubilation and snatching victory from the Dales’ grasp.
It was the Shaymen who got the game underway and they immediately adopted an attacking mindset, pinning Rochdale back in the opening stages. The first five minutes were dominated by Halifax, who won the game’s first corner. The set-piece was taken short to Owen Bray, who found Will Hugill on the edge of the box. Hugill struck the ball first time, but Cody Johnson was unable to get out of the way and inadvertently blocked the effort. The deflection fell kindly to Jay Turner-Cooke, who tried his luck from distance, only to see his shot drift wide.
Rochdale appeared unsettled by Halifax’s relentless early pressure. A misplaced pass from goalkeeper Oliver Whatmuff almost gifted Will Harris a clear opportunity, but the forward narrowly missed out on capitalising.
Despite Halifax’s strong start, it was Rochdale who took the lead inside 15 minutes. Former Halifax man Devante Rodney finished off an impressive move that began deep in the visitors’ half. After a well-timed and daring run, Rodney received the ball in stride and calmly beat Sam Johnson in a one-on-one situation to give the Dales a 1–0 advantage.
Rochdale nearly doubled their lead in the 20th minute when a corner found Kyron Gordon in the box. Johnson produced an excellent save to deny him, though he could only parry the ball into danger. Rodney reacted quickest but saw his follow-up effort strike the post and go out of play.
Halifax responded with chances of their own. In the 23rd minute, Tommy Lavery delivered a superb cross toward Harris, but the ball narrowly evaded the striker’s head.
Bray collected the loose ball but was unable to generate a clean shot. As the half-hour mark passed, the Shaymen continued to press for an equaliser. Harris, Bray and Lavery all had opportunities, yet Rochdale’s defence held firm.
Rochdale made the first substitution of the match in the 41st minute, replacing Tobi Adebayo-Rowling with Bryce Hosannah. Five minutes of added time were indicated at the end of the half, and Halifax nearly made it count. Just before the break, Turner-Cooke delivered a cross that found Harris, but his header sailed just over the bar. The first half ended with Rochdale leading 1–0.
Rochdale began the second half on the front foot, pressing the Halifax defence, though Hobson and Mills remained composed at the back. Halifax soon regained control and dominated the opening exchanges of the half, but Rochdale’s backline stayed organised. Harris had another chance from the edge of the box, only for his powerful strike to be parried away by Whatmuff.
The visitors made further changes, with Connor McBride replacing Rodney in the 56th minute and Ian Henderson coming on for Emmanuel Dieseruvwe a minute later. Halifax’s frustration began to show, as Josh Hmami received a yellow card in the 64th minute for pulling McBride’s shirt, and Cody Johnson was booked five minutes later for a foul on Ryan East. McBride was also cautioned after fouling AJ Warburton.
Halifax defended resolutely to prevent Rochdale extending their lead, and in the 75th minute Johnson produced a world-class save to deny McBride in another one-on-one after the defence was split by a precise through ball.
Both managers turned to their benches in the 76th minute. Rochdale introduced Tyler Smith and made another change, while Adam Lakeland brought on Billy Waters for Hugill. Lakeland made two more substitutions in the 82nd minute, sending on David Kawa and Kieran Morris in search of a shift in momentum.
Rochdale struck again in the 85th minute. Halifax lost possession in midfield and were hit on the counter-attack. With three attackers bearing down on Mills and Hobson, Johnson made two superb saves to keep his side alive, but substitute Tyler Smith eventually converted at the third attempt to make it 2–0.
The Shaymen responded swiftly. In the 87th minute, following a corner, Kawa saw his shot blocked. Waters then fired from outside the box, forcing a save from Whatmuff, and Harris reacted quickest to slot home the rebound and reduce the deficit.
Deep into stoppage time, Halifax found their equaliser. After a throw-in, Cody Johnson delivered the ball into the box. Kawa headed it on into the path of Lavery, who struck decisively to send the ball into the net in the 92nd minute. A late booking for Kawa followed before the referee brought the enthralling encounter to a close, with both sides sharing the spoils.
FC Halifax Town
1 Johnson, 19 Warburton, 5 Hobson, 16 Mills, 33 Lavery, 30 Johnson, 27 Turner-Cooke, 4 Hugill (26 Waters 76(
8 Hmami (22 Kawa 82), 17 Bray (28 Morris 82), 9 Harris
Subs: 12 Ford, 3 Adetoro, 20 Jenkins, 23 Crowe
Rochdale
1 Whatmuff, 2 Gordon, 4 East (16 Pettit 76), 6 Ebanks-Landell, 8 Gilmour, 9 Dieseruvwe (40 Henderson 57) 10 Rodney (21 McBride 56), 14 Adebayo-Rowling (23 Hosannah41), 18 Barlow (38 Smith 76), 22 Moss, 25 Perry
Subs: 17 Pritchard, 36 Francis
Referee: Declan Brown
Goals: Rodney 15, Smith 85, Harris 87, Lavery 90
Yellow Cards: Hmami 64, C Johnson 70, McBride 72, Kawa 90
Red Cards: None
Attendance: 2749 (1393 away)
FC Halifax Town 2 Rochdale 2
Read more posts by Charlie Wood
