FORMER Bradford ace Simon Finnigan will put firm friendships behind him in a bid to get the Giants back on track tonight.

The Ireland World Cup back rower moved from the Bulls to Super League rivals Huddersfield at the end of last season to take up a three-year contract.

The 27-year-old admits he remains close with a number of his former teammates.

But he has warned them it will count for nothing when he steps back onto the Odsal pitch in the claret and gold (8.00).

"What matters tonight is helping us win the game, that means everything," said Finnigan.

"I’m still good mates with a lot of the players at Odsal and we still meet up every so often for a beer, but those friendships will be forgotten as soon as we all step onto the field.

"They’ll be as keen to beat me as much as I’ll be keen to beat them!

"I’m sure it’ll be a totally different matter as soon as the game is over, but for the 80 minutes the friendships count for nothing.

"After losing to St Helens last weekend, it really is vital we get straight back on track. We were bitterly disappointed to have lost that game after the way we’d played at Catalans the week before, but the beauty about rugby league is that you nearly always only have a week to wait to put things right, and that’s what we intend to do tonight."

Finnigan admits that making such a swift return to Odsal may seem a little strange.

But he is hoping that being in such familiar surroundings will make him feel comfortable and enable him to hit top form.

"I’ve been asked a number of times this week if the first fixture I looked out for when they came out was Bradford away," added Finnigan, left.

"But, to be honest, that wasn’t really the case. I was more concerned about how they looked generally for Huddersfield, because I already feel 100% a part of this club.

"I suppose the fact it’s Bradford so soon is a bit of a talking point and I obviously do hope it works to my advantage. I certainly hope I feel comfortable there tonight.

"I think we all feel we let ourselves down a bit last weekend and that tonight is the chance to make amends."