Young full-back Davy Litten has signed a new first-team contract with the Black & Whites, putting pen to paper on an initial three-year deal with the club.
The 18-year-old is a member of the club’s Rising Stars group and becomes the first player to come through the club’s new Centre of Excellence development squad to earn a full-time contract, having been overlooked through the more traditional scholarship and academy pathway, highlighting the potential of the new programme.
It’s a rapid rise for the young utility back, who despite previous junior experience at Hull Wyke, Myton Warriors and Cottingham Tigers, was a relative novice to the sport when he joined the club’s development squad and college programme in 2019.
Since then, Litten has made remarkable progress on and off the field, captaining the development squad to the Colleges Premier Division title, but also excelling in his studies earning distinctions.
His progress was rewarded with a part-time academy deal before progressing to the club’s Rising Stars group, including the chance to train with the first-team squad last season.
Having caught the eye of the coaching staff, Litten has been handed a long-term deal and the chance to earn his spurs in the first-team environment.
Speaking to hullfc.com, Litten said: “I’m proud of what I’ve achieved in such a short space of time, and I feel very privileged to be in the position that I’m in now and I am very grateful for the support everyone at the club has shown me.
“It is time to get down to it now and focus on my development, I am focused on earning my debut at some point and I want to work hard to become a regular first-team player.
“I’ve shown some of my potential, but I’m not really interested in potential, I know I need to work even harder now to become a consistently good rugby league player.”
He added, “Coming through the college system has been massive for me and made me want it more. I missed out on things like academy so that has given me a point to prove and I’m glad I’ve done that so far.
“The club and the Centre of Excellence has been great for me and I love it here. I want to repay the faith they have shown in me now.”
Hull FC head coach Brett Hodgson has been working closely with the club’s Rising Stars and is delighted Litten has been rewarded for his determination and perseverance.
He said: “Davy is deserving of the opportunity to earn his first professional contract with us and he is a great advert for the different opportunities within our system and that the door is never closed for young players.
“He came into our Rising Stars group pretty late last year and he has worked really hard to get where he is now.
“He has some genuine talent, he is a gifted player, and he has worked hard at putting some size on over the last twelve months and to quickly learn aspects of the game and his position.
Hodgson added, “He is comfortable in a number of positions and very athletic, but he is doing a great job learning the full-back role and we’re really excited to see what the future can bring for Davy.”
Centre of Excellence Open Day
Interested in joining the Hull FC College, part of the club’s Centre of Excellence? An open evening for prospective students interested in joining the club’s rugby, sports and education programmes for the 2022/23 academic year will take place on Wednesday 19th January (6-9pm).
Open evening details are below:
Where: Hull FC Centre of Excellence, Pickering Road, Hull, HU4 7AB
When: Wednesday 19th January 2022
Time: 6.00pm – 9.00pm
To register your interest and to book a slot with a member of the Centre of Excellence staff please email ryan.langton@hullfc.com with your name, date of birth and preferred time slot.
For those who live further afield, they can book a Zoom meeting with a member of our team by emailing ryan.langton@hullfc.com
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