Hodgson in no rush to make FC additions

BRETT Hodgson insists any new signing must be right for Hull FC as the head coach looks to add to his squad.

Hodgson wasted no time in bagging Josh Reynolds last month, persuading the former State of Origin half-back to leave Wests Tigers and join him in the Super League, and he has made no secret of his desire to add a couple more names.

The head coach has already revealed he would like to add an outside back, while a middle is also on his list.

However, the 42-year-old says that while the club are assessing their options, they won’t jump into the recruitment market for the sake of it.

“We’re constantly having conversations about our recruitment,” Hodgson told the

Mail.

“What we want is a player who is going to strengthen our squad at the moment, we’ve got plenty of good players in the team and we want to make sure that who we bring in is going to add to that.

“We’re in no hurry just to get anyone. Whether that person drops in the next month, the next six months or 18 months then that’s the challenges of being a Super League team.

“James (Clark), Adam (Pearson) and myself and the coaching staff are all in constant dialogue about the players available and if there’s any wriggle room externally that we can bring someone in. In good time we’ll have more information about that stuff.”

Hodgson welcomed his players back to their County Road training base on Monday, but after seeing another national lockdown declared later that day FC are coming to terms with the possibility to starting the season behind closed doors.

By the time the Super League season gets up and running on March 11, it will have been one day short of a year since Hull fans last saw their side in action.

“I’ve got a lot of empathy for the supporters and the lockdown is bad for everyone in the UK at the moment,” Hodgson added. “With a bit of luck this is going to do the job in making sure we get back to reality sooner rather than later.

“The supporters for us are the backbone of our club and we’re very grateful for the support they’ve given in the past and are hopeful that they continue with their support in the future.

“We’ve spoken as a playing group and as a coaching staff about how important the support is for us and we’re really pushing to make sure the supporters of Hull FC have a good year as well.”