The veteran prop confirmed he will leave Hull FC on Monday night.
Liam Watts has outlined a big reason for his Hull FC exit and believes history is on course to repeat itself at the club. The veteran prop forward will depart the Black and Whites for a second time come the end of the 2025 season, with Watts telling Hull Live earlier this month that he has a couple of Championship offers on the table for next year.
That will see Watts play on in the sport’s second tier, with the 35-year-old believing that Hull, who have vastly improved on and off the field this year, are on course to do ‘something special’ under their head coach John Cartwright.
In fact, Watts has compared the mood around the club to the one when Lee Radford built his Challenge Cup-winning squads, with the front rower backing his teammates to keep building and create another chapter of the club’s history.
“They will always be the highlights of my career,” Watts said on the Radford era, which saw Hull win the cup in both 2016 and 2017. “But the thing that we had back then when Radders took over in 2014 was we knew we were going to build and get towards something, and it’s the same feeling now. I truly believe that this squad over the next 12 to 18 months is going to be back there.
“That’s the hardest thing for me, knowing that I won’t get the chance to be a part of that, but these guys have got something special going here; just keep building, and then see what happens.”
Returning from injury at the end of July, Watts played eight games for Hull this season after signing a short-term deal until the end of the year. Finishing in good form, the prop, who now has 160 club appearances to his name, now leaves with his head held high.
“I’d love to have stayed,” Watts said. “But I don’t want some of these young lads to miss out on opportunities to play for this great club, so I took it out of the club’s hands and decided to make a decision more or less on what I was going to do. It was tough, very hard, and I can only thank Richie (Myler) and the club for having me back.
“I’ve had a couple of injuries, and that hasn’t helped my say in what I wanted to do but I thought I came back and finished with a bit of a flourish. I walked out of the tunnel last Thursday, had a little look and a chat with myself, as you do, and I knew then that this could be my last game in the Super League.
“I’ve enjoyed it. It’s been great. The opportunities I’ve had within the sport have been massive and I can only thank Richie again for bringing me back and letting me enjoy the remaining games I had left.”
And on his future, Watts added: “I’m a bit emotional, and it’s been tough, but it doesn’t last forever, and you’ve got to ride it while it’s there. I’ve got a few days in Portugal now, though – that was the only thing stopping me from crying this morning. I can enjoy my time and then see what the Mrs says when I get back.”