John Cartwright has confirmed that Hull FC have started their recruitment process as they look to fill Will Pryce and Liam Knight’s salaries into their 2026 salary cap – but they won’t rush into any rash decisions as they assess their options for the rest of the season.
The Black and Whites are expected to be granted salary cap dispensation following a season-ending ACL injury to Pryce, and with the exit of Knight over the weekend, they also have a quota spot to use. That opens up the overseas market as well as a domestic addition.
Hull Live understands there is potentially some scope for more than one signing, too – and given availability across the squad, they don’t have to be like for like – with Hull having some fair cap space to go at. However, Cartwright is insistent that nothing will be rushed as they weigh up everything and come up with the best solutions for the club, both for now and recruitment cycles into next year and beyond.
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“We’re not going to rush into anything,” Cartwright confirmed. “We’ll see what’s on the market, see what we can spend, and then we’ll make some decisions.
“At this time of the year there’s not a lot on the market for this season. You’ve got to look at clubs who are willing to release players, or now that we have a quota spot, players that are in the systems over there (in the NRL) who don’t feel like they’re going to get an opportunity.
“There’s a lot to weigh up. That process has already started but I’m more concerned at the moment about how we get through this week.”
In the meantime, Hull could field Davy Litten at full-back once again against Wakefield Trinity this Thursday, with Zak Hardaker, Logan Moy, and Lloyd Kemp as other options. They may have to reshuffle in other areas after injuries to Harvey Barron and Jed Cartwright, and that could affect which position they recruit in too, with all factors considered.
“We’ve got a little bit of cover there (at full-back) for the time being, but it’s a long, long season, and we’re only three games in out of 27,” Cartwright said. “You’d like to say you’d get through the year without injuries but we’re not – we’re going to get injuries.
“Again, we won’t rush. We’ve still got Herman (Ese’ese) on the sideline, who is probably medium-term and still has a fair way to go. But Ligi is back this week and James Bell – we won’t know until the end of the week, but we’re getting a few middles back. If we stay healthy there and get Herman back, it saves us from making a rushed decision.”
And on Litten, who scored a try and ran for nearly 200 metres last week, Cartwright added: “I was really happy with Davy. He made a couple of errors under the high ball, which is uncharacteristic for him, but I was really happy with his overall input in the game.
“He made close to 200 metres, he scored a really good try and he was everywhere in defence. We won’t just judge him on putting a couple of balls down.”
