Black and Whites take a big stride towards securing Grade A status with IMG

HULL FC have taken some ‘major’ off-field strides as they aim to become a Grade A club in the IMG scores once again.

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The Black and Whites finished tenth in IMG's standings last year on 14.51 points - the highest-ranked Grade B club.

However, the club expects to make up the 0.49-point shortfall this year and return to the top grade.

Nine clubs - St Helens, Leeds, Wigan, Warrington, Hull KR, Catalans, Leigh, Wakefield, and Castleford - all finished with Grade A scores last year. Hull, who submitted a formal application to play in Super League next year, are expected to join them when the IMG scores are released next month. At the time, the club said they are ‘confident’ of doing so.

Of course, clubs are graded on five pillars: fandom, finance, stadium, performance, and community - with Hull expected to gain points in most categories.