Zak Hardaker (born 17 October 1991) is an English professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for Leeds Rhinos in the Super League. He previously played for Featherstone Rovers in the Championship. His preferred position is fullback, but he can also play at centre and on the wing. An England international representative, Hardaker has won two Challenge Cups and three Super League championships with Leeds. Individually he has been named to the Super League Dream Team on two occasions, and was the 2015 Man of Steel.[2]
Playing career
Featherstone Rovers
Hardaker joined Featherstone Rovers from local amateur side Featherstone Lions after leaving school at Carleton High School in Pontefract. He previously played for his home town club Knottingley Rockware before signing pro terms with Featherstone Rovers.
He scored a hat-trick of tries on his 2010 début for Featherstone Rovers against Hunslet, and went on to score 22 tries in 14 games in all competitions in his début season. This included two tries in Rovers' extra-time 23–22 Co-operative Grand Final defeat by Halifax.
At the end of the season he was named joint Co-operative Championship Young Player of the Year, along with Gareth Moore of Batley Bulldogs.
Leeds Rhinos
Hardaker signed for Leeds Rhinos in October 2010 for a transfer fee of around £60,000 and was awarded the number 27 jersey.[3] He trained with the Rhinos senior squad during pre-season & made two appearances in pre-season friendlies, before returning to Rovers on a dual contract for the 2011 season. He made 5 further appearances for Featherstone, scoring 5 tries.
In March 2011, due to injuries to Leeds wingers Ben Jones-Bishop & Lee Smith, Hardaker was called back to the club & made his Super League début against St Helens at Headingley. Hardaker scored a try in Leeds' 30–16 loss. Hardaker then featured sporadically for Leeds throughout the season; arguably his best match was in the play-off game against Huddersfield Giants, in which he scored a hat-trick[4] and picked up the man of the match award in a 34–28 victory. He also scored the final try in the 2011 Super League Grand Final as Leeds defeated St Helens RLFC 32–16 at Old Trafford, Manchester.
Hardaker was handed the number 4 jersey for the 2012 season, taking over from long time servant Keith Senior. However, following injury to Brent Webb, he moved to fullback for the latter half of the season and showed excellent form as Leeds successfully defended their Super League title. Hardaker was awarded the 2012 Super League Young Player of the Year for his form.
At the start of 2013 Hardaker suffered a broken thumb in a 42–14 victory for Leeds over Salford, causing him to miss the 2013 World Club Challenge match against Melbourne Storm.[5][6][7] [8]
Hardaker was part of the Rhinos squad that won the 2014 Challenge Cup, and he earned his first selection in the Super League Dream Team at the end of the season. His form also saw him earn a recall to the England squad for the 2014 Four Nations, however he did not feature in the tournament.
Hardaker's form continued in 2015 and he was part of the Rhinos squad that won the 2015 Challenge Cup. At the end of the season he was named Man of Steel, the first Leeds player to win the award since Iestyn Harris in 1998.[9]
International Career
In 2012, Hardaker made his England debut at fullback at the end of the season in the 2012 Autumn International Series..[10]
Hardaker was named in England's squad for the 2013 Rugby League World Cup, however he was later forced to withdraw from the squad for personal reasons mid-tournament.
In 2015, Zak made his first appearance for England since the 2012 Autumn International Series. He appeared for England in a test match against France where the English went on to destroy the away team.[11] Zak has also been selected for the test series against New Zealand which starts a week later.
Honours
Club
International
Individual
Controversy
Hardaker was handed a £2,500 fine for an unspecified breach of team discipline while with England during the 2013 Rugby League World Cup. He was stood down from the England squad as a result of the incident and received a formal caution from his club.[12]
Hardaker was forced to issue a public apology in 2014 after being charged for a homophobic insult directed towards Michael Monaghan during a match. He later received a 5 match ban and a £300 fine for the incident.[13]
In March 2015, Hardaker and Leeds teammate Elliot Minchella were detained and questioned by police over the alleged assault of a 22-year-old student, causing Hardaker to miss his side's 18–6 defeat to Warrington. Hardaker did not face criminal charges, but admitted to the assault and agreed to pay £200 compensation and write a letter of apology to the victim. He was also once again subject to internal disciplinary action by his club.[14]
References
External links
