Thornton disappointed as Hornets dealt first league defeat of season

Rochdale Hornets head coach Gary Thornton expressed his frustration as his Rochdale Hornets side were defeated by Hunslet in Round 2 of the Betfred League 1 season, despite enjoying a strong start which saw them 10 points up inside the opening 15 minutes.

Tries from Lewis Else and a 60-yard effort from Joe Hartley gave the Hornets an early advantage, but for the second week in a row, their opponents came back as Hunslet scored 20 unanswered points by the hour mark.

The hosts battled back and levelled things at 20-20 thanks to tries from Max Flanagan and a second from Hartley.

However, a late converted try from the away side and a missed conversion from Matty Rudd after Else’s second of the day two minutes from the end saw the Hornets handed their first league defeat of the season.

Speaking to Hornets TV post-match, Thornton rued the missed opportunity to take four points from four, saying: "We've lost a game that we should've won today. It's not acceptable getting beat at home from a winning position.

"It's a massive disappointment. We started the game really well, got a 10-point lead and I thought we were good value for it.

"We went away from what had worked, and we allowed Hunslet back into the game. That's why we lost today."

Looking ahead to next weekend's game away at Oldham - a side who beat the Hornets in the 1895 Cup earlier this season - Thornton expressed his desire to focus on the positives from their Round 1 victory at Midlands Hurricanes.

"We had a really encouraging start against Midlands and I want us to build on that,” the Hornets head coach said. 

“We've got to get back to what was working for us.”

On the injury front, he added: “Deane Meadows has a hamstring problem and there are a few others carrying some injuries, so we're going to have to re-group on Wednesday, see what the situation is and hopefully put out 17 players who can compete against Oldham.

"It'll be a tough game and we've been there once already this year, so we've got to pick ourselves up and be prepared.”