Now the dust has settled on the 2024 season and the major news of the takeover of Hull FC by former Leeds Rhinos president Andrew Thirkill and his business partner David Hood OBE, I thought I would take a closer look at how the sleeping giant from the MKM Stadium moves forward.

That is the first point, they are still going to be playing at the MKM Stadium as former chairman Adam Pearson and Mr Thirkill confirmed at the fans forum, because the Black & Whites have a good lease there and, when it is up for renewal in three years time, that is exactly what they intend to take advantage of, to stay there for the foreseeable future at least.

AP also threw into the mix just how difficult it would be to get a new purpose-built stadium idea off the ground, with various factors to be considered, including residents and the local authority, as well as the inevitable cost, among many other factors.

The embattled former owner also gave a hint of the financial problems that had been facing the club since the Covid-19 pandemic at the pre-season dinner, when he admitted to Sky commentator Dave Woods, on stage that in the last two years, the club has lost something in the region of £4.5M, which inevitably meant that the club had to cut its cloth accordingly.

The Airlie Birds have also, of course, recently lost their indicative A Grade in the IMG rankings, although I personally believe that too much emphasis cannot, and certainly should not be put on this.

Hull FC are the highest ranked B Grade club anyway, they are confirmed as playing in the Betfred Super League in 2025 anyway, so it changes very little. Some will say it means that Hull could be relegated next season, however that is wrong.

If Hull were going to be relegated as a Grade B club, it would have had to happen when these gradings were confirmed, with the grading for the 2026 competition now taking place over the next years, by which time it is highly likely that they could rise again to Grade A status, which of course will mean, at that time, that they are guaranteed a Super League berth again.

During the fans forum there was much talk of possible new players arriving, so I asked the question about how important Hull’s youth development in 2024 had been and Director of Rugby Richie Myler confirmed that players like Logan Moy, Jack Charles and various other young players are massively important to the future of the club.

It is certainly fair to say that the Black & Whites have signed a raft of players above the age of 30, with 36-year-old Jordan Rapana, 33-year-old Aidan Sezer and others such as Oli Holmes, Zak Hardaker and John Asiata among the new recruits, but Myler explained that is because they won’t block the clear pathway for the younger players to regular first team action.

With their recruitment, Hull have signed the sort of experience that their mostly very young squad was crying out for this year, they’ve put players in place now, who can teach the young lads even more than what they learnt in the season just gone and, with the likes of Rapana and Asiata, they have brought in a whole new culture and a winning mentality which is badly needed after such a horrific season.

Mr Thirkill has gone on record at the fans forum, saying that he and Mr Hood will be putting money into the club for the first three-years, without taking anything out, funds will be held within the club for re-investment, putting the Airlie Birds on a much stronger financial footing and making those debts a thing of the past.

It has to be said that FC do face a tough opening to the 2025 season with a trip to the South of France, before a home game against the reigning champions, and of course, with the shenanigans from this year, many eyes will be concentrated on Hull’s 2^nd home game of the new season, as Leigh Leopards visit the west side of this divided city.

A lot will become much clearer when the new season starts in February, but it has to be said that a lot felt very different at the fans forum and the pre-season dinner, the latter of which saw Dave Woods emphasising many times that everything now feels possible again at Hull FC.

Personally, I am sure it will all take time, let’s face it, how many times have we seen instant success after a big-money takeover of any club in rugby league?

Written by Ian Judson (site contributor & Hull FC fan)