By Ian Judson
Hull FC and the University of Hull have partnered to open a new £1.5 million community hub, including the club’s brand-new training base.
The base is funded by Hull City Council, the Rugby League World Cup 2021 Created By programme, Sport England, and the Hull FC Community Foundation, uniting the club’s Rugby Pathways from grassroots level to the first team for the first time.
The hub is designed to create opportunities for the community, including young players, with the club’s Centre of Excellence based at the facility.
It promises to offer an unrivalled playing, training, and education experience, as well as opportunities for progression into higher education at the university. The facility acts as a hub for community rugby league and provides a long-term base for the club in the city, while adding to the university’s first- lass sports provisions.
Speaking on hullfc.com, director of rugby Richie Myler said: “This is a significant milestone for our club – after years in the planning, we are delighted to see the university’s rugby league hub at completion, and we’re excited to see our players and staff move into the facility in the coming days.
“As has been evident with the changes and developments we have been making across the club in recent months, our entire organisation is striving to better itself from top to bottom, and calling this international standard facility our new training base, for hundreds of players from first-team level right down to our grassroots, is a major piece of the puzzle.
“We’re determined to see the hub help create a lasting legacy at the very heart of our local community and grassroots rugby league, which epitomises the hallmarks of this club.
“We once again thank the key stakeholders involved in this project, including Hull City Council for their continued support, the Rugby League World Cup, and the University of Hull’s senior leadership team.”
