York Knights boss Mark Applegarth will give over half of his new signings for 2026 a run-out this weekend, as the club prepare for their first match of the new campaign.
A Super League club for the first time, York made the step up alongside Bradford Bulls and Toulouse Olympique, and went heavy in the recruitment market to make sure they had a squad capable of competing in the top flight.
In total, 15 signings were made, and of those were a mixture of youth, untapped potential and experience. Eight of the new recruits will get a chance to make their unofficial debut, with Applegarth naming his side that will travel to Huddersfield Giants tomorrow.
In a game that will be played as part of Matty English’s testimonial, Huddersfield, who named their initial team yesterday, will get the first opportunity to test out the Super League new boys, who have named a strong 21-man squad to make the trip to the Accu Stadium.
Overseas signings Jordan Lipp, Xavier Va’a and Nikau Williams are all set to feature, as are Paul Vaughan, who joins from Warrington, Josh Griffin, Denive Balmforth, Sam Wood, Justin Sangare and Danny Richardson.
Also included in the squad is King Vuniyayawa, the former Salford and Leeds prop who recently signed for Newcastle Thunder.
That is because the Knights and the Thunder have a partnership whereby the two clubs can request and/or send players to the partnering team in a bid to find more game time either at Super League or Championship level.
York Knights squad to take on Huddersfield Giants: 1. Toa Mata’afa, 2. Ben Jones-Bishop, 3. Jordan Lipp, 4. Sam Wood, 5. Scott Galeano, 6. Ata Hingano, 7. Liam Harris, 8. Jack Martin, 9. Paul McShane, 10. Paul Vaughan, 11. Josh Griffin, 12. Jesse Dee, 13. Jordan Thompson, 14. Denive Balmforth, 15. Xavier Va’a, 16. Justin Sangare, 17. Kieran Hudson, 19. Danny Richardson, 20. Oliver Field, 26. Nikau Williams, 31. King Vuniyayawa
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Head Coach, Mark Applegarth, has confirmed his 21 Player squad for Saturday’s pre-season match against @Giantsrl at the Accu Stadium (3pm KO)
🔗 More information available here: https://t.co/XU2tPOMdly pic.twitter.com/V4xzOmRFFP
— York RLFC Knights (@YorkRLFC) January 15, 2026
