HUNSLET coach Kyle Trout says the rest of the season is a “rolling audition” for players as he continues to build a squad for next year and beyond.
The club has already agreed deals with props Ethan O’Hanlon and Harrison Gilmore for what will be the former Super League forward’s first full campaign as head coach.
And Trout, who himself signed a contract to the end of 2026 when he was last month confirmed as successor to Dean Muir, to whom he had been assistant, says conversations over further retentions and recruitment are ongoing.
The 34-year-old, who played for Wakefield and Hull KR in the top-flight as well as Featherstone, Dewsbury, Sheffield, Keighley, a string of others on loan, and French team Limoux, is keen to create some stability after a tough season.
Hunslet had to strengthen their squad in limited time following last year’s promotion from League One, which came against the odds and wasn’t sealed until mid-October, which in the eyes of many is a major factor in their struggle to cope with the step up.
And Trout explained: “These things are never simple, because we have budgets to consider and there has been uncertainty over the league structure going forward, but if possible, we want to get away from always going from year to year on contracts and avoid that high turnover of players.
“The last few weeks have been a chance to make a few tweaks to the way we are doing things and to see how people are coping and who is buying in.
“Knowlesy (assistant Michael Knowles) and I are setting the template in terms of expectations and minimum standards that have to be hit, but we also want some things to be player-led and for reviews to be a two-way thing.”