‘Players don’t want to live in Hull’ – Tony Smith says Hull FC struggle to attract signings

Grix was also rocked by the departures of two of Hull’s biggest overseas names, with Nu Brown and Tex leaving the club. Brown returned to Australia for personal reasons, where Hoy moved to Super League rivals Castleford Tigers after a public spat with former coach Smith.

Now Smith has spoken of the difficulties he has faced in providing overseas talent to Humberside fighters.

Super League Quiz: How many of these former players can you name? #2

Tony Smith opens up about the struggle to attract players to Hull FC

Credit: Imago Images

Smith, who has also managed Huddersfield Giants, Warrington Wolves and Hull KR, was part of the Sky Sports team covering the Hull v Leeds game. Discussing why things went wrong during his time with the club, he believed the difficulty of attracting players to Humberside played a big part.

“There are a lot of things that make it difficult for Hull. One is to attract players, you know, and get high caliber players to want to come here. One because of the recent history and results, but also two, the location. It’s a difficult one.