ONE of the most celebrated signings of the off-season so far has been Jake Connor’s move to Huddersfield Giants.
Connor exited Hull FC after six seasons at the MKM Stadium, citing family reasons as one of the main factors for moving back home to the John Smith’s Stadium.
For Huddersfield head coach Ian Watson, the signing of Connor sends a big message to the rest of Super League that the Giants are here to stay in the top four, aiming for silverware and willing to bring in huge signings to do just that.
The question remains, though, where will Connor play?
Will Pryce and Tui Lolohea both enjoyed great spells at fullback in 2022, with the latter unlucky not to be in the running for the Man of Steel award at the end of the season.
Meanwhile, in the centres, Watson has recruited heavily with Esan Marsters, Kevin Naiqama, Jake Bibby and Sam Halsall all set to fight for the two centre spots.
Where does that leave Connor?
The maverick could fill in at halfback now and again with Jack Cogger exiting the Giants, but Pryce, Theo Fages and Olly Russell are likely to be in front of the former Hull man in that regard.
It is an interesting quandary for Watson, but one thing is for certain: Connor will play a huge role for the Giants going forward.
Watson himself spoke about Connor being a long-term signing and with Pryce still being heavily linked with a move to the Newcastle Knights from 2024, it could pave the way for Connor to nail down a permanent place in Watson’s side.
Of course, at Hull, Connor topped the try assist charts from fullback in 2022, beating new teammate Lolohea to the top spot, but there were question marks over his defence.
It appears as though the centres would be the perfect position for Connor, but with Huddersfield enjoying a plethora of players in that role, it’s a brilliant headache for Watson to have.
