Into his second season at Hull FC, the passion for youth development in Francis Cummins is there to see. The club’s academy and reserves coach is all about nurturing young players into the Black and Whites’ first-team, with a club-wide goal to make them the backbone of the side in the years to come
That process is well underway, with many young players shining at Hull last year. Some, such as Will Kirby, Ryan Westerman, and the like, are expected to continue that rise this season having graduated from the academy, while others are continuing to find their way.
Then there’s the current batch of under-18s, with Cummins now looking for leaders to emerge in what is a new-look academy team featuring over a dozen scholarship players. Laying down the challenge, the incentive is there for all to make their mark.
“We had a fair few step-ups last year, so there’s been some big changes to the squad,” Cummins told Hull Live. “We’ve got a big intake of first years, but it’s good; they are learning their trade, and I’m enjoying it.
“It’s a normal cycle, and we’re waiting for the second years now who maybe weren’t at the forefront last year to show a bit of leadership, and we’re seeing which of those characters start to come through. They were in their first years last year around more dominant players, so it’s good to see the dynamic change a little bit and see them develop from when I first met them last year as 16-year-old kids. Now they’re 17 or 18 and taking on the mantel on left by some of the older players.
“For example, the twins (Callum and Lloyd Kemp) have been with the first team over pre-season, so that will change again when they drop back to the academy. It gives time for other players to push on and start to lead the group a bit. It’s been really pleasing that they’ve been able to do that.”
And for Cummins, there is pride in the many different routes of his young Hull FC players, routes that have seen players come through in more unorthodox ways from the more conventional scholarship, academy, to first-team route.
“The club has been in a good place, and there’s some really good examples of some different routes,” he continued. “We’ve got players who weren’t on scholarships first, and then they’ve come through. Will Hutchinson is a good example of that, and then Jordan Baker has found his way. He played just one game of academy in his first year, and then he kicked on.
“That’s what you’re looking for. There’s some players who come a bit later, and then there’s some who start really well and then fade away. That’s the natural selection of the academy. It’s good.”
Relishing his academy role, Cummins is back full-time with the club’s under-18s once again, having stepped up to assistant then interim coach Simon Grix last season. Now working with John Cartwright and the like, the aim is to bring players through the system, but the warnings are also there, with Cummins keen to not push them or judge them too quick.
“My main involvement is around discussion,” he added. “I’m not out on the field with them; I’m more about chatting about bigger picture things with them. There’s a lot of experience within the coaching staff, and there’s a lot of opinions, but the young lads—they’re not the finished article, so you can’t treat them like that.
“They might not be at the same level as a Herman Ese’ese, but we see where they are on the scale to get them to that sort of level. A good handful would have struggled all pre-season, but it’s a struggle that makes them.
“We’ve all been there, and my job with them at times is to say it’s not always about judging them and comparing them to the front-liners; it’s more about the process of where they are and where they can get to. In a season or two, we don’t know yet where they’re going to go. That’s the exciting bit; to see the ones who will step up and who will get to that level, but we have to be patient.”
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