Goole Vikings have announced the signing of former Hull FC full-back Jamie Shaul ahead of their inaugural season in League One. Shaul retired from rugby league in 2023 after spending the entirety of his professional career with his hometown club Hull.
He has since been playing rugby union on a part time basis with Hull RUFC while working as a bricklayer. However, the ambitious Goole outfit have managed to coax the 32-year-old out of retirement to play for the club next season.
Of course, Shaul knows both Scott Taylor, who will be the head coach of Goole Vikings, and James Clark, FC’s former CEO who has a consultancy role, very well from his time with the Black and Whites and he becomes the third player announced by the club.
Shaul follows ex-Doncaster man Tom Halliday through the door at the East Yorkshire club, while Ben Hodder has signed his first professional deal with the club, too.
“I’m thrilled to be joining Goole Vikings at such an exciting time, I’m proud to be involved with a local project like this,” Shaul said after putting pen to paper with the Vikings.
“The ambition and vision of the club really appealed to me, and I’m looking forward to bringing my experience to help the team succeed.
“There are some very good people here, some I have worked with before, so I know what standards we are looking to hit and how driven everyone will be to be successful.
“I love the idea of the challenge ahead and I’m eager to play my part in building something special here and hopefully a bit of a legacy we can leave behind for the next set of players and fans at the Vikings.”
On his latest recruit, Scott Taylor added: “Signing a player of Jamie’s calibre is an incredible moment for our club and one which I’m sure will excite the fans.
“Jamie is still relatively young and in fantastic shape, he has been playing very well in rugby union but has jumped at the opportunity to be part of what we are trying to build at the Vikings alongside a lot of people he knows well.
“He will be a good leader for us and bring a huge amount of experience for our younger backs.
“Jamie still has a lot to offer the game, he is excited about the opportunity and has that spring back in his step, so we are really excited to see what he can do for us.”
