Dawson made his Rochdale debut on 16 August 2014, in a 2–1 defeat against Chesterfield. He made his home debut on 23 August, in a 1–1 draw against Bristol City. Since making his debut for Rochdale, Dawson quickly established himself in the first team in the midfield position. In a 4–0 win over Crawley Town on 6 September 2014, he set up two goals for Matt Done and Calvin Andrew. He played his last game for the club in a 0–3 defeat against Oldham Athletic on 24 March 2015. Despite suffering setback that saw out of the first team, He played 30 times for Rochdale in the league that season, as they finished a very credible 8th place, their highest-ever league placing.