Ranking all 13 of John Cartwright’s signings as Hull FC coach with veteran duo top

John Cartwright made a pretty big impression in his first season as a Super League coach – and a big part of Hull’s improvement in 2025 was undoubtedly the recruitment they made.

Hull signed a plethora of players from both Super League and overseas to form a new-look squad that came desperately close to making the play-offs.

But of the transfer business they’ve done in that time, how do they stack up against one another?

We’re naturally not yet ranking Hull’s new arrivals for 2026 – that would be slightly harsh as they’ve yet to play a game for the club! We’re also leaving off anyone whose signing was announced prior to Cartwright’s move to England – which means John Asiata and Yusuf Aydin aren’t included. Technicalities, we know: but there has to be some rules here.

That leaves 13 signings in total. Here are how we think they’ve performed.

13. Jordan Abdull

Sadly, Abdull’s return just didn’t work out – and he never kicked a ball for Hull FC in his second stint with the club. Abdull is rebuilding his career with Widnes Vikings in 2026 after a year out of the game last season.

12. Oliver Holmes

The former Castleford Tigers and Leigh Leopards man had all the hallmarks of a really good signing, with his experience likely to be crucial for Hull in 2025. But just one appearance in 2025 against York Acorn in the Challenge Cup was all Holmes managed before retiring due to injury.

11. Hugo Salabio

The French forward joined Hull for 2025 but was limited to just five appearances under Cartwright. He would ultimately finish the season on loan at Castleford Tigers, and he is now with Huddersfield Giants in 2026. Another one that didn’t work out.

10. Liam Watts

The veteran forward returned to Hull for a second spell after being let go early in the season by Castleford Tigers. He struggled initially to break his way into Cartwright’s plans and while he did finish the season with eight appearances for Hull, he wasn’t retained and will play for Goole in the Championship in 2026.

9. Ed Chamberlain

Cartwright was officially announced as coach by the time Hull had confirmed Chamberlain would join the club on a three-year deal starting in 2025, with the former Leigh and Widnes man finishing the season with the Black and Whites. He did well enough, offering plenty of versatility and playing 20 times – but he was let go after just one season to join Bradford.

8. Jordan Rapana

It’s really tough to start splitting a number of signings from hereon out, starting with Rapana. He arrived and looked set to be Hull’s first-choice at fullback before ending up spending the bulk of 2025 in the outside backs. He played 23 games and scored three tries, before cutting short his time with the club after just one season to return home.

7. Cade Cust

Cust’s arrival at the MKM Stadium didn’t really ruffle too many feathers at the time, but he proved to be one half of a solid and at times impressive partnership with another signing on this list, Aidan Sezer. It remains to be seen what role he’ll play in 2026 with Jake Arthur on board.

6. Will Pryce

The best is undoubtedly yet to come from the super-talented 23-year-old, who was limited to just ten appearances after returning to Super League with Hull FC in 2025. If we do this list again in the coming years, we’d bet he’ll be a lot higher – it’s just right now, there were some other signings who really stood out last year.

5. Liam Knight

The former Souths and Canterbury prop made a big impression upon arriving in England – and Hull were one of the big winners with the extension to the overseas quota which allowed them to keep Knight for 2026. He’s been a great pick-up without question.

4. Sam Eseh

The decision to get Eseh through the door on loan from Wigan Warriors proved to be a brilliant one, despite being somewhat low-key at the time. Eseh produced the best form of his career to date under Cartwright, and he will hope to use that form as a springboard to ignite his career with Wigan.

3. Amir Bourouh

The former Salford hooker played a big part in Hull’s success in 2026, making 26 appearances in total and showing that he’s a player Cartwright can build around in the years to come.

2. Zak Hardaker

Like a fair few signings on this list, there were question marks raised when Hull decided to offer a two-year deal to Hardaker following the end of his time with Leigh.

Cartwright helped reinvent Hardaker into one of Super League’s standout back rowers – but he also offered some great displays at fullback and at centre. What a signing, and a firm favourite with Black and Whites supporters now for good reason.

1. Aidan Sezer

It was a signing that many scoffed at, but how Cartwright, Hull and Sezer proved everyone wrong with the decision to bring the half-back to Super League once again in 2025. Hull’s captain was superb throughout the year, producing some brilliant rugby and some memorable moments.

He has proven to be a masterstroke piece of business.