BEING a Hull FC fan didn’t go too well during the 2022 Super League season.
Another season spent finishing outside the play-offs left the Black and Whites fans and board scratching their heads, with head coach Brett Hodgson stepping down before Tony Smith was appointed in his wake.
The former Hull KR and Warrington Wolves boss is just what Hull need to reconnect with the city after a number of years of underachieving with Smith big on culture and community.
Most of Hull’s recruitment for next season had actually been done prior to Smith joining the club with Brad Dwyer and Liam Sutcliffe penning deals from Leeds Rhinos, Jake Trueman signing from Castleford Tigers and Newcastle Knights’ Tex Hoy making the trip across the hemispheres from the NRL.
Smith, however, put the final piece to his jigsaw with the capture of highly-rated halfback Jake Clifford from Newcastle as the Black and Whites go into 2023 with a brand new spine as well as a plethora of young stars itching for first-team action.
Chairman Adam Pearson has backed Smith to bring the good times back to the MKM Stadium and, if the veteran Australian’s past is anything to go by, he will be able to do just that.
Hull have lost Jake Connor to Super League rivals Huddersfield Giants whilst Luke Gale and Manu Ma’u have also departed with the Black and Whites going into the new season with a much-different dimension than 2022.
With this in mind, how could Hull possibly line up in 2023? (Numbers below do NOT represent their squad numbers whilst new signings are highlighted in bold).
1 Tex Hoy
2 Adam Swift
3 Carlos Tuimavave
4 Liam Sutcliffe
5 Darnell McIntosh
6 Jake Trueman
7 Jake Clifford
8 Chris Satae
9 Joe Lovodua
10 Ligi Sao
11 Andre Savelio
12 Jordan Lane
13 Brad Fash
Substitutes
14 Brad Dwyer
15 Kane Evans
16 Scott Taylor
17 Josh Griffin
