Hull FC coach Lee Radford has insisted that his squad’s senior players will have to step up to the mark on Friday night against Wigan – with the need to protect their younger players a must.
Radford has only been able to name an 18-man squad for the game at the DW Stadium owing to a huge injury crisis which has seen him lose 12 first-team players.
And with the daunting task of trying to become the first team to win in Wigan in 2015 ahead of them, Radford wants his older, wiser players to make sure they rise to the occasion.
“There is a real onus on our senior blokes to step up. They are going to have to look after one or two of the young kids during the match,” Radford told the Hull Daily Mail.
“They have to show a response. We are playing a ruthless side tonight and the senior players left have to step up.
“The injury situation is what it is. When I got the job I said I wanted to blood a few youngsters, but I didn’t expect this.
“All I’ve asked of the young blokes is to play with energy and it’s an opportunity for them to enhance their reputations.
“For the youngsters it’s a case of saying this is what the bright lights look like.”