Jordan Andrade: We're coming into our own now

Rochdale Hornets prop Jordan Andrade feels his side are building some good momentum as they continue to push forward in the second half of the Betfred League 1 season.

The Hornets created further ground between themselves and 5th-placed Midlands Hurricanes with a 38-14 away win against Cornwall, a victory that extended their winning run to four games.

Gary Thornton’s side is on the road again this weekend but faces a considerably shorter 70-mile round trip to South Leeds Stadium where they face Hunslet, knowing a win takes them above the hosts into 3rd.

Andrade, who has featured in all 11 league fixtures this season, believes that the gears are starting to turn for his side as they look to build on their winning run.

“Our team is at full strength now," he stated.

"We’re coming into our own a little bit now and the structures we’ve worked hard on are starting to come into play.

“Training is competitive. There’s a lot of people challenging for places and it shows the strength of the squad we’ve got.

“We’re just taking things week by week and we’re happy we’re getting better.”

Sunday sees Andrade return to South Leeds Stadium to face a side with which he spent just under three seasons. 

“I had a good few seasons at Hunslet. I like going there because they’ve got a small tight field which can lead to a big challenge in the middle," he added.

“As a prop forward it’s something you enjoy and allows you to test yourself against good opposition packs."

The Hornets suffered defeat in the reverse fixture against Hunslet in Round 2 by a narrow 24-26 scoreline. Andrade feels that this was a loss that could have been avoided, despite the strength of this weekend's opponents.

The squad alongside himself believe that they can pick up the two points this time around.

“That Hunslet game was two points lost and we did that to ourselves,” he admitted. 

“Hunslet have a really good team, so we're taking nothing from them. They’ll be thinking they can beat us because they beat us earlier in the season.

“It’ll be a good battle this weekend.”