For Hull FC’s Will Gardiner, cracking Super League is all about confidence. And for the 23-year-old, the confidence is there to keep growing in what is arguably the biggest year of his young career to date.

Looking to kick on, the Hull-born middle made 18 first-team appearances last season, his busiest return since debuting at the back end of 2022. Now in his third pre-season as a full-time professional rugby league player, Gardiner’s sights are now set on learning from the old guard and cementing his spot.

Standing at six feet and knocking on 100 kg, the physical components are there to play at this level, with the former West Hull open-age star determined to prove his worth.

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"Last year was a big one for me," Gardiner told Hull Live. "It wasn't the best year for the club, but the opportunities I got definitely helped me. I'm hoping I can build on that even further this year and show what I can do more.

"I think I'll get a good opportunity to do that. I got more and more confident as last year went on. It's a big thing playing in Super League: having the confidence to believe and know you can do it, and towards the back end of the year, I definitely felt more comfortable in my role and that I can play at this level."

Standing tall in the reserves, Gardiner has risen through the ranks in recent years after quitting plumbing to join the club full-time. Knowing he has the club’s backing, the young middle is taking in all he can, with the likes of John Asiata and Aidan Sezer showing their influence on the squad.

He continued: "The club is trying to invest in us young lads and eventually give us the reins—that’s the overall plan. I've learnt a lot already this pre-season from the likes of John Asiata, Herman Ese’ese, and Ligi Sao; just training with them, they give you little tips all of the time. Then there’s Aidan—ever since he's come in, he's shown leadership. Both he and John have been very vocal, spoke to the boys, and really tried to guide us through.

"There's a real professionalism around them both and how they go around and how they hold themselves. It's definitely influenced me, and a lot more of the other boys as well. Even the performance staff, just everything we do, it's all scheduled better, and the way we go about things—the environment as a whole has gone up another level.

"Obviously, the strength of the squad has improved, so hopefully that will lead to my performances improving as well. It's just been a massive step up this pre-season. The intensity has been a lot better. Hopefully it will show when we play."

Adding the necessary experience to the club, Gardiner has also been impressed with the impact new head coach John Cartwright has made, with previous NRL-standard admissions given on the intensity of training and the like ahead of February’s pre-season game against Castleford Tigers.

"John has come in and demanded a lot of respect," Gardiner added. "I think the way he has gone about everything has really helped us as players. He's definitely helped me a lot.

"We're always together, and that's also helped. There's been a massive difference in how connected we all are. It’s been a massive step up. Ever since we've come back (after Christmas) it's been more rugby-related, which is a good thing. John has been clear on how he wants us to play.

"We've been finding our identity and how we're going to make a difference from last year, which obviously wasn't good enough. We've done a lot of work on our shape and structure. Hopefully we can have a good performance against Castleford and show what we've been working on."

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