Exeter moved back into the League Two play-off zone with an emphatic 4-1 win over Rochdale.
Grecians move into play-off positions
Exeter moved back into the League Two play-off zone with an emphatic 4-1 win over Rochdale.
Steve Basham and substitute Craig McAllister each scored twice before Clark Keltie pulled a goal back for Dale with an injury time penalty.
The Grecians went in front after 15 minutes when Neil Saunders' superb pass sent Steve Tully scampering clear down the right. After Tully's cross had been turned towards his own goal by Roy McArdle and saved by Sam Russell, Basham had the simple task of tapping into an unguarded net.
Saunders then created Exeter's second as his pass sent Ryan Harley clear and he was pulled back inside the box by Scott Wiseman. The defender was given a red card and Basham made no mistake with the resultant penalty.
The Grecians had to wait before they made the game safe in the last quarter. McAllister's first goal was a fine solo effort in which he ran from halfway before coolly slotting the ball into the corner and the big frontman tapped home a fourth from Liam Sercombe's driven cross.
Danny Seaborne gifted Rochdale a soft penalty in stoppage time which Keltie converted, but it was scant consolation for a well beaten Dale.
