Hull FC forward joins Championship club on season-long loan

Hull FC forward Will Gardiner has joined up with Championship side Featherstone Rovers on loan. Gardiner has struggled for game time under John Cartwright this season and with his situation unlikely to change any time soon he has been allowed to make the move to West Yorkshire.

He joins Featherstone on a season-long loan, with Hull having the option to recall him after just two weeks should they need to. The loan takes Gardiner up to the end of his Black and Whites contract and he’ll be keen to catch the eye and prove his worth as he looks to secure his future in the game, either at the MKM Stadium or elsewhere.

Gardiner is expected to step straight into Paul Cooke’s plans and he could even make a debut for the Flat Cappers on Sunday afternoon when the club make the short journey down the M62 to Halifax Panthers.

Featherstone have made a poor start to the Championship season, with defeats to London Broncos and Sheffield Eagles coming inside their opening three league games. The club were knocked out of the Challenge Cup last week against Catalans Dragons, too.

As such, they’ll be hoping the addition of Gardiner can help the club find some form in the second tier.

The 23-year-old first joined the Hull FC second string in 2022 after impressing scouts while in action for local community club West Hull. Due to a raft of injuries in the first-team he made his senior debut for the club in the August of the same year and he has been a member of the FC fold ever since.

In that time he has made 29 appearances for Hull, with one try coming along the way. His most recent outing for the Black and Whites came in the heavy loss to Wigan Warriors in round two last month, with Gardiner stepping off the bench.