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Hill flies to Robins' nest

28/ 5/2001

The 32-year-old, who was released by Steve Parkin at the end of the season, has signed a three-year contract at the Whaddon Road club.

And manager Steve Cotterill is delighted to have the Bolton-born player on board.

"He is a good, experienced defender," he said.

"He's solid, aggressive and left-footed, and being left-footed is important because of the possibility of us not being able to secure Grant McCann from West Ham.

"A left-footed central defender is a real bonus."

He added that he had been impressed by Hill in previous encounters with Rochdale.

"He has been a real tough nut to crack whenever we've played Rochdale, with his no-nonsense effort and commitment."

And the former Plymouth and Blackburn defender had no hesitation in joining the Robins on Thursday.

"As soon as Steve Cotterill made his intentions known, and how keen he was to sign me, I was interested," he said.

"His enthusiasm for the club and for myself as a player were genuine.

"I've played a lot of Football League games, especially at the lower level, and Cheltenham seems a superb set-up. It's very well run.''