Kane Evans is expecting to be pushed all the way by new Head Coach Tony Smith in the 2023 Betfred Super League season.
The Fijian international enjoyed a strong second half to the season but he missed the last couple of games of the campaign through injury.
Evans was instrumental in many of Hull’s fleeting attacking moves in the latter stages of the season, with a dangerous offload game up his sleeve.
But the 30-year-old is expecting to be pushed to the next level by his new head coach, Tony Smith, in the 2023 season, after the pair had a conversation recently.
“When I first caught up with Tony, he gave me a run down on his expectations of an overseas player in Super League and he said that being good is not enough – I need to be great,” Evans explained.
“You have to be great in every area and you have to do your best to lead the team.
“It was an eye-opening conversation but I really appreciated the honesty and expectation, and it’s motivated me – it’s fired me up. It’s good to hear that from the coach.
“I’m not going to take his comments lightly. I think it will bring the best out of me, because I have a real personal fear of failure.
“I still have so much work to do before I can play again, but the fire is burning deep inside me real hard.”
Evans missed the last two matches of the 2022 Betfred Super League campaign with a knee problem, and having undergone surgery, the 30-year-old is working his way through his rehab programme.
It’s not just a new head coach that Evans is getting used to working alongside at the University of Hull training facility.
There is also a new physiotherapist at Hull FC, working with Evans, as well as a handful of other players recovering from their respective injuries.
As Evans provided an update on his recovery so far, he also waxed lyrical about the club’s new physio, Seamus McCallion, a former player himself.
“The rehab is going well at the moment. It looks as though I’m going to be fighting to be ready to play in our second pre-season match and then hopefully I’ll be flying into Round One,” he said.
“But I have to say that I’ve been really impressed with the new physio – I’m learning a lot from him.
“He’s already taught me a few new tricks that I wasn’t aware of before and I’ve been around for a while at some good clubs.
“Even though I haven’t started running yet, some of the things that he’s helped me out with has been awesome.”
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