Hull FC player sends social media message to confirm early exit

Joe Cator has taken to social media to confirm his early Hull FC exit in order to take up an opportunity elsewhere. Hull Live reported on Tuesday evening that Cator had been allowed to leave the club, with an immediate move to the Championship being touted.

The forward was approaching the end of his contract with the Black and Whites, his hometown club, but he has been released early as he strives to find some momentum in his career once more. The 26-year-old had been with Hull since 2020, joining the club from Leigh, but his time at the MKM Stadium has been hampered by long-term injuries, it’s fair to say.

Cator missed a season and a half after rupturing his Achilles twice in the space of seven months and a troublesome back injury has seen him miss much of this season, too. As such, Cator has made just six appearances for Hull this season with his last outing coming in the defeat to London Broncos back in May.

The loose-forward made 60 outings for the Airlie Birds over the course of his five seasons at the club. However, he’ll be keen to draw a line under what has been a frustrating campaign and hit the ground running at his new club, which is expected to be confirmed in the coming days.

Taking to Instagram, Cator wrote: “The end of a chapter…VERY excited for the next one!”

A host of current and former Hull players commented on Cator’s post, with the likes of Jordan Lane, Davy Litten, Ligi Sao, Scott Taylor, Carlos Tuimavave and Josh Griffin sending their best wishes.

Despite being a Hull FC fan as a boy, Cator started his carer with Hull KR, where he made eight appearances before joining Leigh ahead of the 2019 season. He played 33 times for the club and helped them to the semi-finals of the 1895 Cup and the Championship play-offs.

His form was enough to earn a move to the MKM Stadium under Lee Radford and he caught the eye during his first season with the club. Unfortunately, his momentum came to a halt with his first Achilles injury, which came in Hull’s 23-22 win over KR in August 2021. He suffered a reoccurence of the same injury on his return to the fold against Leeds Rhinos in March 2022.

He becomes the latest Hull player to be released before the end of his contract, with Cam Scott leaving the club earlier this month ahead of his move to Wakefield Trinity.