Thursday 2 October 2014 08:45, UK
Hull FC have continued their recruitment for the 2015 Super League season with the addition of Curtis Naughton from Sydney Roosters on an initial one-year contract.
The former England Academy and Bradford Bulls youngster has spent the last year in Australia and becomes the East Yorkshire club’s fifth signing ahead the new campaign.
The 19-year-old can play across the outside backs as well as stand-off and adds even more competition to Lee Radford's growing number of options out wide.
"I can't wait to get back to the UK and begin pre-season training as well as meeting my new team-mates,” Naughton told the club’s official website.
"Hull FC was an obvious choice for me because it has a fantastic fan base, a great stadium and a young energetic team of coaches, who are willing to give players the chance in the first team on merit.
"I have spoken to Lee [Radford] a couple of times and he is one of the many reasons why I believe Hull is the place for me, I used to love watching him in the first grade at the Bulls when I was younger.
"He believes I can do a job and I cannot wait to repay the faith he has shown in me by putting in good performances.
"During my time at the Roosters I feel I have developed as a player and a professional, and working alongside stars such as Anthony Minichiello and Mitchell Pearce has been a great experience for me on and off the field."
During my time at the Roosters I feel I have developed as a player and a professional, and working alongside stars such as Anthony Minichiello and Mitchell Pearce has been a great experience for me on and off the field.
The signings of Callum Lancaster and Naughton this week mean Hull FC can now boast a squad with no less than 21 players under the age of 25 as they continue to lay the foundations to build for the future.
With some experienced players in the frame such as captain Gareth Ellis, long-serving duo Kirk Yeaman and Danny Houghton and new signings Mark Minichiello, Steve Michaels and Leon Pryce, there is an air of anticipation in Radford’s squad.
"Our squad is really taking shape and we've got an exciting group as we prepare for pre-season. Curtis is another very good young signing for us to add to that, bringing further competition for spots and offering balance across a few positions," said Radford.
"It is a very young squad, so like a lot of our younger players we can't expect too much too soon. We have fallen into that trap before and put too much pressure on them to perform.
"But I'm in no doubt that Curtis himself will be confident in his ability to come here and compete, in fact it wouldn't surprise me if one or two of the younger players like him are pushing some of our more seasoned regulars for a spot in the team come the first few games of the season.
"As a coach and for the club we can't wish for anything more exciting than that, so we're all looking forward to cracking on again in pre-season. The squad is just about there, we might have time to get one more so we'll see."
