Cornwall RLFC head coach Mike Abbott has named his 21-man squad for Sunday’s Betfred League 1 round 12 clash at home to Rochdale Hornets.

The Choughs come into their latest Memorial Ground clash on the back of a 30-6 triumph over Newcastle Thunder last time out.

For Rochdale, meanwhile, who were defeated 18-12 when they last visited the Duchy in August 2023, they also faced Thunder in their last encounter. At a rain-lashed Gateshead International Stadium, Gary Thornton’s side survived a huge scare to prevail 24-18.

With all League 1 clubs having last weekend off owing to the Betfred Challenge Cup and AB Sundecks 1895 Cup finals at Wembley Stadium, Mem chief Abbott can report an almost clean bill of health.

Tom Ashton won’t face his former club due to an ankle problem while Maltese international Kaine Dimech returns to the fold after a month out.

There is also a place in the Cornwall squad for recent signing Tomo Clark, with the Samoan powerhouse pushing for inclusion.

AJ Boardman has returned to his parent club, who, ironically, are Rochdale, and he could feature against the Choughs.

It will be a special afternoon on Sunday for Matt Ross and David Weetman if they are named in the matchday 17, as both will record their 50th competitive appearance in the British rugby league structure.

“The break for the Challenge Cup was something that I was glad of, but then in some other respects, I wasn’t,” Abbott told cornwallrlfc.co.uk. “We had played almost non-stop for two months so a week off helped some of our players who were carrying knocks and niggles.

“But on the other hand, we built some real momentum against Newcastle, especially in the second half, so it would have been nice to continue that.

“Apart from Tommy, almost everyone else is fit and ready to go. We gave Rochdale a really good game up at their place, but then the red card came and they took control.

“They have had an extra week off and have got a few lads in to boost their numbers so we know it will be tough, but we will just worry about ourselves.” Cornwall (from): Aaronson, C Abbott, Black, Boots, Brown, Campbell, Clark, Collins, Conroy, Cullen, Dimech, Lloyd, Mitchell, Nichol, Rhodes, Ross, Simpson, Small, Rusling, Trerise, Weetman.