HULL FC boss Andy Last admits he was caught off guard by Jed Cartwright’s “sudden” departure to St Helens.
The 29-year-old, off contract at the end of the campaign, has joined Saints on loan for the next month, with a view to a permanent deal.
“It was a very sudden move,” said Last of Cartwright’s exit. “It was all done very, very quickly.
“It caught me off guard a little bit, but it’s something that needed to happen. I wish Jed the best of luck.”
Australian back-rower Cartwright, signed whilst his father John was head coach, had featured in each of Hull’s last four matches prior to Thursday’s clash with York, but injuries had restricted him to just 23 appearances over his two years at the club.
And with Ethan O’Neill – signed permanently from Leeds after impressing on loan – adding to back-row options including Lennon Clark, Zak Hardaker, Joe Batchelor and Connor Bailey, Last believes it was the right move for both the club and the player.
“It was needed for himself,” explained the head coach.
“He’s not got a contract for next year, and there’s the opportunity for him to get some game time at St Helens.
“He’s now got the option to extend that, so with Ethan coming in, Lenny emerging, Zak Hardaker playing in that second row and Batchelor, it was the right move for Jed, and the right move for us.”
Cartwright’s move did cause some disruption to Last’s plans ahead of Hull’s 20-16 defeat at York, with Harvey Barron returning on the wing and Tom Briscoe moving to centre.
But the 45-year-old dismissed that as no excuse for his side’s performance in North Yorkshire.
He said: “We didn’t get the opportunity to practice as a team because we got to the team run and had to make some changes.
“We had a bit of disruption there, but that’s not an excuse. We need to be better than what we were today.”