Hull FC boss delivers early Jake Arthur assessment and lifts lid on salary cap status

Hull FC boss John Cartwright is confident that Jake Arthur will turn out to be one of his key men in 2026.

With his contract at Newcastle Knights in the NRL coming to an end in 2025, Arthur made the decision to join up with the Black and Whites on a two-year deal. It’s a move that has been designed to see the half-back blossom at senior level and make his name after spending several years on the peripheries of NRL clubs.

The 23-year-old has 34 first grade outings under his belt, but if this season goes to plan, he will be expected to almost double that figure this year. He’ll start the season alongside skipper and one of last year’s stars of Super League Aidan Sezer in the halves and Cartwright believes the pair can dovetail together, with Arthur’s kicking game being a particularly notable asset.

“When you recruit, you do as much homework as you can on the person you’re bringing in,” Cartwright told Serious About Rugby League.

“He’s a champion young fella, a really good guy, he’s team orientated and very committed to his training and his football.

“All the blokes around him really appreciate what he’s brought and he’s really going to help Aidan out, especially with his kicking game.

“He’s very natural, he has a lot of natural instinct as a footballer. One thing is he has a big kick on him, so I think that’s going to take a lot of pressure off Aidan.”

Of course, Arthur is one of eight signings made by Hull FC in the build up to the new campaign, with Arthur Romano joining him in the back line and Sam Lisone, Harvie Hill, James Bell, Joe Batchelor, Joe Phillips and Connor Bailey providing pack depth.

With FC spending up to cap, though, they won’t be looking at making more additions at this time.

“We’re pretty full on cap space, we’ve sort of gone all in,” Cartwright added. “We needed to invest in middles and we’ve done that. We needed another half, we’ve done that. Not a lot of scope there with the cap.”

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