Hull FC coach Andy Last talks player motivation, ill-discipline and attitude as key Leigh Leopards threats assessed

Andy Last believes there are still plenty of motivating factors for Hull FC players to use in 2026, one of which is getting the chance to impress incoming boss Steve McNamara ahead of next season. 

McNamara will return to his boyhood club in 2027, joining on a three-year deal from Warrington Wolves, where he currently serves as Sam Burgess’ assistant.

His announcement was confirmed back in April, after John Cartwright’s messy exit allowed the club to bring someone new in for the upcoming year.

Play-offs are well out of the question now, and the lack of promotion and relegation means that FC have nothing to worry about in terms of their league positioning. However, that doesn’t mean they don’t want to improve their standing, with the club currently sitting 13th, which is equal to the record of their worst-ever league finish.

Last was asked in his weekly press conference how much faith he has in his side to avoid equalling that record in 2026.

“Well, there’s nine games to go. We’ve got some fixtures on there which are going to be challenging and we know that.

“I think every team has got reasons to play well and our motivation is to finish the season as strong as we possibly can.”

Commenting on those motivations further, the interim boss added: “[Players have the chance to] Put yourself in the shop window and put yourself in good form for the new coach to come in and analyse and see if he wants you part of the plans.

“We’ve got a professional responsibility to the badge and to the club and we need to make sure that we try and give our best every single week whenever we play.”

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Hull FC coach calls on players to improve attitude and discipline in Leigh Leopards clash

FC take on Leigh Leopards this week, in what will be the third meeting between the sides in all competitions this year. Leigh have won the first two, and form dictates they will complete a clean sweep of the Black and Whites this season.

“They were very strong against Warrington at Magic Weekend and then they were probably a little bit off in terms of the levels that they can get to against Castleford,” Last said on this week’s opponents.

“They’ve got some very, very good players. Isaac Liu, their 13, a really dangerous ball player. A good player for them.

“Lockie Lam, an excellent player. (Davey) Armstrong is absolutely lightning so he’s going to obviously cause us some problems with his speed.

“They’re a well-balanced team. They’ve got some strength from the forward pack and some strike on their edges and they’ve got some creativity from the span. So, it’s going to be a challenge but it’s one we’re looking forward to.”

If Hull are to win this week, one thing they have to nail is their discipline. Last believes that that was his side’s biggest downhall against York Knights last week, and called on his side to improve massively in that area.

He said: “We’ve spoken about our discipline and discipline is not just the person in the middle of the field, it’s the ability to do your job and do your job well, regardless of how you’re feeling in terms of fatigue and regardless of how you’re feeling emotionally.

“We just failed to nail that in the game against York.”

Player attitude was another thing that needs work. On that aspect, Last added: “I certainly feel as though they’re giving 100% in terms of effort, but there’s aspects of the game which you can quite clearly see there’s some frustration in there.

“That’s frustration towards obviously some of the officials and some of the decision-making, some frustration towards each other in terms of decisions that have been made, when to offload a ball, when to kick a ball.

“There are some little bits in there which we certainly need to be better, but we’ve still got nine games to go, and we need to make sure that we’re striving for our best performance on a weekly basis.”