Barnsley appoint Rochdale boss Keith Hill as manager

Rochdale finished ninth in League One under Hill in the 2010/11 campaign

Barnsley have appointed Rochdale boss Keith Hill as their new manager.

The 42-year-old replaces Mark Robins, who resigned earlier this month after a disagreement over his playing budget.

"I'm really excited about managing Barnsley and really looking forward to the forthcoming season," Hill told BBC Radio Sheffield.

He was given permission to speak to the Championship club last week but ruled himself out of the running for the post before performing a U-turn.

Rochdale's assistant manager David Flitcroft has also made the move to Oakwell to team up with Hill once more.

Former Plymouth player Hill became the permanent manager at Spotland in 2007 and this season guided Rochdale to ninth place in League One, three points off the play-off places.

He recently had told BBC Radio Manchester that moving to Oakwell would not be the right move for him but a change of heart means he is the Tykes' 10th manager in as many years.

"Barnsley was always the right challenge and the right football club but from my point of view I needed to take time out to assess and evaluate and to make sure everybody is singing from the same hymn sheet," he added.

Brian Laws, Kevin Blackwell, Danny Wilson, Phil Parkinson, Alan Irvine and Russell Slade had all been linked with the role.