Rochdale Hornets return to action on Sunday at Hull KR

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Hull Kingston Rovers beat Hornets at the Crown Oil Arena in February

Rochdale Hornets return to action on Sunday, as they travel to Hull Kingston Rovers to take on the leaders of the Kingstone Press Championship.

The game will mark the beginning of the second half of fixtures in the first phase of the season, and will be the second meeting of the two clubs this season.

Last time out the Hornets were left to rue their missed chances as they passed up an opportunity to take the lead late on in the game, before losing 28-18.

In front of a new club record attendance of 2,012 the men in red, white and blue put in a valiant performance but were ultimately left disappointed.

Since then Hornets have picked up just one win and a draw, with their current run standing at six straight defeats.

The most recent came in heart-breaking fashion as Chris Atkin’s late field-goal sealed a 23-22 victory for local rivals Swinton Lions on Easter Monday.

A week off while the Challenge Cup took centre stage has given Hornets a chance to freshen up after a hectic run of three games in eight days, but their opponents weren’t afforded that luxury.

Hull KR pulled off a shock win over Super League side Leigh Centurions in the cup to bounce back from their first defeat of the season, as they went down 14-6 away to Toulouse Olympique.

It will be a tough trip for Hornets to make as they face the league favourites on their own pitch, and they won’t be helped by their injury worries.

Jono Smith picked up a knee injury away to Swinton which rules him out, while Jo Taira and Samir Tahraoui will sit the game out due to suspension.

Jordan Hand will be up for selection though as the RFL confirmed his sin binning against his former club was the wrong decision, and there’s an outside chance of Jack Holmes featuring after a foot injury.