Hull FC’s academy will tour Australia in 2027 – with fundraising underway for the trip.
Hull FC’s emerging talent will enter the 2026 season with a big carrot dangled in front of them: the chance to head on the club’s 2027 Academy tour to Australia.
For the group of second-year scholars, which contains first-team coach Andy Last’s twin sons, Jacob and Isaac, it’s a big motivation, the same of which goes for the first-year academy players – a crop containing the likes of Caleb Paleaaesina, Kingsley Sharpe, and the like.
That motivation is in play now, and while the club have covered half of the costs of their Australia tour through owners Andrew Thirkill and David Hood, the other half will be paid for by fundraising.
Those efforts have already started, with the scholars completing the Yorkshire Three Peaks challenge back in August. Their next event is a Christmas Bake Off – a chance to have some festive fun and continue raising funds for a trip Head of Youth Richard Tate believes will have huge benefits for the players.
“We’re really looking forward to it,” Tate told Hull Live. “It’s a massive carrot for those lads, not only to progress and play Super League for Hull FC, but in the short term, to be able to get on a plane to Australia and play rugby league against clubs in Australia.
“We’ve got kids who have never been on a plane before and we could be taking them on a plane to the other side of the world. It’s a massive carrot for those players, not only to impress me and Franny (Cummins) and get those contracts, but to go experience that and get to play against the best on the other side of the world.
“We’re really excited about that and we’re looking forward to seeing what it can bring out of those players over the next 15 months – both on and off the field.”
As for the fundraising, Tate continued: “It’s a large sum of money that we need to raise. Andrew, David, and Richie (Myler), as a club, have donated half of it. They will be paying half of that cost, which is great, and then we as an academy setup are raising the other half.
“We’ve done well so far. We did our first fundraising challenge in August – the three peaks. My legs have just about recovered from that but it was a great team building exericse.
“We’ve got a number of activities throughout the year. Our next one is a Christmas Bake Off. We’ll be testing the lads’ cooking skills. We’ve got the sickness tablets ready. But there are a number of activities planned. We’re really excited.”
As well as nurturing the rugby league talent, with pre-season already underway for the academy, Tate is looking forward to seeing players come out of their shells over the next year.
“The buy-in off the field is big,” he added. “We’re not asking the lads for any money out of their own pocket. Everything is around team-building exercises.
“I’m excited to see how they get on with each other and how friendships are being forged and things like that. That’s the other side of touring. You’re in each other’s pockets 24/7 for seven days a week.
“We’re hoping to see them come out of their comfort zone a little bit; that’s what the three peaks were, and especially by peak three, seeing some of the lads was unbelievable, keeping morale up and supporting each other. I think it’s great to see.”