Hull FC star Jake Connor’s move sends big message to the rest of Super League

Hull FC’s Jake Connor is one of rugby league’s enigmas.

Love him or hate him, the man is incredibly talented but there has often been a question mark over what his best position is on the rugby league field.

Since his arrival in East Yorkshire, head coach Brett Hodgson has shown his loyalty to Connor as a fullback, but that loyalty seems to have wavered in recent months with Hodgson bringing in Jack Walker from Leeds Rhinos on loan until the end of the season.

As such, Walker has been given the decisive number one jersey by Hodgson whilst Connor has been shifted to halfback and then centre, with the maverick enjoying a ‘roaming’ role in the big win over Toulouse Olympique last weekend.

With Walker defending at the back, going forward, both took it in turns to chime into the line with Connor being more of an attacking threat.

Now, though, with the centre position seemingly locked up going forward for the rest of the 2022 Super League season, England boss Shaun Wane must be watching intently.

That’s because he is not exactly inundated with stars in the centre position for the World Cup; Leeds Rhinos’ Harry Newman, St Helens’ Mark Percival and Brisbane Broncos’ Herbie Farnworth are the obvious choices but all three have suffered badly with injury in 2022.

Giving Connor a chance out wide has seemingly given him the confidence to exude more of his skill whilst being kept out of the firing line in terms of defensive prowess.

For wane, having Connor in one of the centre positions going forward in the World Cup would be a major positive, with Sam Tomkins set to be the fullback for the competition.

Plus, you just can’t leave someone out that has registered 27 try assists despite being on the sideline for six weeks at one point in the year.