SKY SPORTS pundit Jon Wilkin has labelled Hull FC’s appointment of Richie Myler as director of rugby as “weird” with the former St Helens veteran explaining what needs to be done at the ailing Super League club.
The Black and Whites have gone in a new direction with head coach Tony Smith losing his job, Simon Grix taking over on an interim period whilst Myler has been appointed to oversee all recruitment and retention as well as other roles at the club.
For Wilkin, though he has hailed Myler’s confidence, he feels it is a “weird” appointment.
“It is, I suppose, a left-field appointment because I didn’t see the job being advertised, and I wasn’t aware that Hull were in the market for somebody like this,” Wilkin said on Sky Sports’ The Verdict.
“They’ve taken Richie Myler, who’s just dropped straight out of his professional career into this.
“It just felt like a weird appointment, but that being said, he’s got the confidence of a thousand men. He’s self-assured and confident, so I’m sure he’ll give it a great crack.”
Wilkin went further, explaining what Myler has got his hands full with at the MKM Stadium.
“I wish Richie all the best: he’s got a job on his hands, because usually when you go into a job, there’s real clarity about what the mission is, the goal is, about where you can make improvement. I think with Hull FC, there’s so much to unravel.
“First thing is first-team performances. Two is long-term succession planning, recruitment, and all of that piece. That needs to happen. That also needs to fall inside the bigger vision and investment in the club. Somebody coming in at the top end of the club.
“Now Richie goes into a club at maybe its lowest ebbing in some time, which is an exciting opportunity for a young guy with no experience, and as I will always say, a naive eye to a situation sometimes brings a fresh perspective.”
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