Harvey Cartwright on Hull City deal, England Under-20s and loan options

The Hull City goalkeeper made his England Under-20s debut in the spring, having earlier been capped at Under-18 level with the Young Lions where he rubbed shoulders with the likes of Leeds United’s Joe Gelhardt and Manchester City’s Cole Palmer.

Both are regarded as two of the brightest young talents in the Premier League, alongside several others in the Under-20 set-up.

That number includes Leeds forward Sam Greenwood and another City star in James McAtee. Others such as Tyrhys Dolan, Taylor Gardner-Hickman and Cameron Archer also made an impact at Championship level in 2021-22.

Cartwright made his Under-20s bow in the Europe Elite League fixture in Poland in late March, with a memorable season having also seen the Grimsby-born player, 20, be handed his first-team debut for Hull, lining up in the second-tier games against QPR and Barnsley.

Cartwright said: “When I got my first (England) call-up a couple of years ago, the squad we had then were players like Cole Palmer, Joe Gelhardt and Noni Madueke.

“To see what they are doing now is massive and a few of them are playing in the Premier League, which is huge and it pushes you on.

“Last season was a massive season of progression. Even though I only played two games (for Hull), I still learned from them and it was a taster to make me want more.

“It is the classic saying, once you have played, you keep wanting more and I want to get as many games as I can.

“He (head coach Shota Arveladze) just wants me to get better and whoever the goalkeepers are, he wants us to push each other on for the No 1 shirt and for us to get better. It is a really exciting league and with what Hull City are doing to take the club forward, we are going to be challenging up there and amongst them. It should be a really good season.”

Alongside his international and club highs, Cartwright also sampled the muck and nettles of non-league football during a loan spell at Northern Premier League outfit Gainsborough Trinity.

It was a tough school which tested the mentality and aptitude of the then teenager as it did for Hull’s star asset in Keane Lewis-Potter, who spent a brief temporary stint at Bradford Park Avenue earlier in his career.

Lewis-Potter, currently on England Under-21s duty, is now widely regarded as one of the top young players in the Championship and is on the radar of several top-flight sides.

He continued: “It (Gainsborough) was a massive learning curve and a really good experience to see that side of the game.

“It was ugly football at times and you got ‘lumped’ with crosses and you had players who wanted to hurt you on the goal line. It was a different kind of experience, but I really enjoyed it.

“You had got men who would want to win to get that extra bit of bonus, so they are going to do everything to try and win. I got a few sly elbows.

“The pressure is on every game as people have got mortgages and bills to pay and need that win bonus. That’s how people earn their money.”

The next stage of the development of Cartwright, who signed a new long-term deal last month, could well see him heading out on loan at an English Football League club next term – should it be deemed necessary.

It certainly proved beneficial for another of the club’s top talents to emerge through the academy in recent seasons in Jacob Greaves, who has never looked back following a season-long loan at Cheltenham in 2019-20.

“If I did go on loan (again), I’d want the experience of trying to win every game,” said Cartwright.

“I just leave it to the club and whatever they think is best for me and we will discuss it when it comes. It is definitely a consideration and whether it will happen again, I don’t know.

“But I am definitely open to anything about where I want to play first-team football.”