Hull FC must act soon before a poor start turns into something more sinister.
05:00, 15 Mar 2026Updated 17:19, 15 Mar 2026
Hull FC’s poor start to the season continued against Leigh Leopards. (Image: Dave Lofthouse, Hull FC)
To say Hull FC’s start to the 2026 season is a cause for concern is an understatement. The Black and Whites look pedestrian, slow, jaded, disjointed, off the pace, and out of sorts. Of course, they have time to turn it around, but the alarm bells are ringing, and if things don’t change soon, then they’re in for a tough slog of a year.
Unfortunately, Saturday was more of the same, with Hull suffering their fourth consecutive defeat, crashing out of the Challenge Cup after a 16-6 loss at Leigh Leopards – a side down to their bare bones but very much deserving of their victory.
The Leythers, taking a step in the right direction after their own indifferent start, beat Hull to the punch and played the game on the front foot. In fact, for the first 30 minutes, they dominated the contest, continuing what has been a worrying trend for the Black and Whites so far this year.
In fact, in four of their five games against top-flight opposition, Hull have been up against it at the start of the game. They’ve played on the back foot against an opponent with all the momentum and have struggled to keep up with the pace of the game, making errors and then compounding those errors with six agains or penalties given away.
Early days for sure, but the increase in ruck speeds has seemingly done Hull no favours. They aren’t winning the play of the ball in attack or defence and are playing the game on the back foot and under pressure with the opposition on their throat.
It’s a vicious cycle. Hull are losing the field position battle and then they’re just hanging on and banking on their scramble defence – the only real positive in what has been a disappointing start. But while this team have largely shown up defensively, with the gritty and resilient traits instilled last season coming to the fore, ultimately, you can only hold out for so long, and eventually, you crack.
That’s been the case virtually every week so far, with Hull struggling to get out of their own end and, in turn, kicking from deep and defending in their own half, losing the arm wrestle, the territory battle, and ultimately, the scoreboard.
Zapped of energy, Hull are struggling to get their line speed going in defence, instead haemorrhaging metres through playing on the back foot, poor discipline and penalties, and if they survive, they are then struggling to get a roll on with the ball with quick rucks and yardage absent. It’s a pattern that has been their undoing over the last month, and one that shows no signs of letting up.
And then when Hull finally manage to get a foothold, cue the second half at Leigh, where chances presented themselves, their attacking shape isn’t clicking. They’re too lateral when the game now is centred on ruck speed and playing fast and direct. They’re just not building pressure. In Cartwright’s view, there’s no foundation to their game; instead, they lapse in concentration and are full of frustration, looking for the miracle play when they need to build into games with patience and strategy.
Things have got to improve soon before it’s too late, but to improve, there is a growing reality that Hull – dealt sucker punches in the cases of Will Pryce and Liam Knight, not to mention anther long-term injury to Jed Cartwright – need reinforcement quickly. They have recruitment factors in their favour – salary cap space and a quota spot – and they need to use them quickly.
On the lookout for new signings, Hull – who do have the likes of Herman Ese’ese to come back into the team – are cautious not to jump in and regret a purchase that could complicate their squad and cap for next year, and there’s also the reality that signing new players at this stage of the season isn’t easy, but they need to find some solutions soon.
They need a spark from somewhere – that’s blindingly obvious. Where that new recruit(s) lies is up for debate. Seemingly it’s a new full-back, perhaps a prop, that’s of interest, but there’s a case for back row and hooker too. But Hull – who were hoping to kick on this year after restoring some pride last season – need something; of that there is no doubt, with the season in danger of slipping away. That sounds like a mad statement with 23 Super League rounds still to play, but it’s a reality growing by the week.
The club need to add some quality, some X-factor, before it’s too late. It’s the first big test of the new regime now – and they have to come up trumps. The season depends on it.