Leigh Leopards boss makes Zak Hardaker prediction after Hull FC change

Leigh Leopards boss Adrian Lam believes Zak Hardaker’s future could be in the back-row as he continues to shine as a makeshift Hull FC forward.

Hull have gone through something of injury crisis at second row this season with Jordan Lane, Jed Cartwright and Ollie Holmes all being ruled out with long-term issues. As such, the experienced Hardaker has been asked to fill in over the last month by John Cartwright and he has more than looked the part.

In five starts in the pack, Hardaker, who is usually seen at centre, has picked up plenty of plaudits with his defensive strength coming to the fore with regularity. Cartwright isn’t the first head coach to ask Hardaker to step inside and do a job at second-row, though, with Lam doing so on the rare occasion during games before the former England international’s move from Leigh to Hull.

Lam even admits to giving it thought when the pair were together at Wigan Warriors and as he prepares to welcome the 33-year-old back to Leigh Sports Village, he believes Hardaker could eventually make the jump to become a forward full-time in the coming years.

Adrian Lam on Hull FC veteran Zak Hardaker

“I think Zak is just the ultimate competitor and when you’re trying to change the culture of a club, Hull did struggle over the last year or two, his on-field competitiveness is as good as any in the game,” Lam said ahead of tonight’s intriguing clash between Leigh and Hull. “He’s playing out of position at the moment, I think we played him there here a couple of times and that’s given him some indication that he can play there, and I think he’s done a pretty good job.

“He’s one of those guys who has a child mentality where when he crosses that line he’s going to have fun and he’ll do whatever it takes to win. We’ve got to deal with him, he’s a handful and when he’s confident, he’s certainly a good player.”

Asked if he felt Hardaker could make that move into the back-row full-time in the future, he said: “I think so, I thought about that when I had him at Wigan as well, playing him in the back-row, but we didn’t get too many opportunities to do that.

“We did here and I think he did a really good job in the semi-finals against Salford, he came off the bench and played nearly 70-75 minutes in the back-row and did a great job.

“Uncharacteristic for him to go in there but he’s a rugby player and he has that mentality of a child where he goes out to have fun and do whatever it takes to win. They’ve certainly got an asset in that in him.”

Leigh Leopards v Hull FC line-ups predicted with key men missing for both sideshttps://t.co/DeoqSn9Lc8

— Serious About Rugby League (@SeriousAboutRL) May 22, 2025