Charles' career first as FC advice and motivation laid out

DIFFERENT CHALLENGES BUT ONE HE'S STILL TAKING HEAD ON

- By DAN TOMLINSON

JACK Charles has battled through a career first this year - getting injured. But in true Jack Charles fashion, the half-back turned it into a positive.

First tearing his hamstring back in November, Charles spent several weeks on the sidelines, and then in his first session back, he tore ankle ligaments in a wrestling session and was out for a further three months.

But rather than dwell on his injury setbacks, the first of his rugby league career, Charles used his time in rehab to focus on other things. And while the injuries brought natural frustration, the results now, after numerous consultations with head coach John Cartwright, leave Charles with a clear vision of what lies ahead, with three key areas at the forefront of his focus.

"While I've been injured, I've had a good time to reflect on how I want to play the game," Charles, speaking exclusively to Hull Live, said: "I've studied it and come up with a vision of how I want to play and how I can implement things into my game.

"I've been taking it day by day, but it's all about, and I know this is really cliché, keeping things simple. Watching the best halves and the best players, they do the simple things really well and on repeat. That's something I want to do.

"I want to get my kicking game right, get my defence right, and run the ball. They're the three things I want to take into every game. I just want to simplify things and really look at the little details and not the bigger picture too much."

Laying out Cartwright's impact, Charles, who played 17 first-grade games for Hull last year, continued: "It's definitely some advice that I've taken on board from Carty. He wants me to do the simple things and do them on repeat and not try to overcomplicate things.