Amir Bourouh ready to do nine shirt justice following changing of guard at Hull FC

The sight of Danny Houghton making tackle after tackle in the coveted jersey is all Super League's youngest generation has ever known.

Amir Bourouh was only nine when Houghton took the shirt from Shaun Berrigan, older than some of his current peers but still too young to remember a time before Hull's greatest hooker.

Now 24, Bourouh has been tasked with replacing the two-time Challenge Cup winner, a former Man of Steel and the club's joint-third highest appearance maker.

Rather than feel overawed by the responsibility, Bourouh is sensing an opportunity to create a legacy of his own.

"Since I started watching rugby, he was always the starting hooker," Bourouh told The Yorkshire Post.

"There are some other good hookers here as well but I felt like it was a great opportunity to cement that starting position and replicate what he did for all those years.

"When you look back at all the games he played, the trophies he won and the Man of Steel, I sat back and realised how big an honour it was to get his nine shirt.

"I've been given the shirt and it's mine to lose now. I'll be doing everything I can to do the shirt justice."

Bourouh is preparing to make his competitive debut against York Acorn in the Challenge Cup on Saturday after finding his way back to Yorkshire.

The Huddersfield native is a product of Siddal's fabled youth system, coming up alongside Morgan Smithies, Tom Holroyd and Riley Dean before being scouted by Wigan Warriors.

Bourouh had a loan spell at Halifax Panthers in 2021 but is ready to put down roots in his home county after swapping Salford Red Devils for Hull.

"It still seems far from home but it's nice to be at a Yorkshire club," he said. "I moved over after doing two weeks of travelling. That was enough.

"I spoke to Richie (Myler, director of rugby) about the goals he has for the club. It's obviously a club with a massive history and one that needs to be getting in that top six again.

"I felt like it was on the right track from what he was saying at the time and now I'm here I know it's definitely on the right track.

"At the start of pre-season, we were told to forget about what's gone before and start anew.

"There's a nice ethos around the place and we're building a good culture. It's up to us to replicate that every week on the field."

Hull have been written off before a ball has been kicked in 2025 after plumbing new depths last season when they only avoided the wooden spoon on points difference.

It is familiar territory for Bourouh following an enlightening experience at Salford.

From the outside looking in, the Red Devils appear to be in perennial turmoil yet have found a way to qualify for the play-offs in two of the past three seasons.

Salford's financial troubles have dominated the build-up to the new campaign but Bourouh feels the mood inside the camp will be markedly different to the sense of concern across the wider game.

"It's probably been worrying for others looking in but I don't reckon anyone has been worried there," he said. "It's nothing new to them because it happens most years.

"It just adds more to that underdog story for them and fuels their fire. Paul Rowley will really enjoy going off the back of that.

"It's something all the team buy into. Rowls really drives that underdog mentality. It was kind of an 'us against them' mentality and we wanted to prove people wrong.

"It's a good mindset to have. They'll probably do the same again this year after everything that's happened."

Whereas Salford do not have to look far for inspiration after defying the odds to finish fourth last year, Hull have to go back to 2020 for their most recent play-off appearance.

Improvement is the objective for the Black and Whites in 2025, which to many means halting their gradual slide down Super League.

But John Cartwright's new-look squad are not about to settle for another lowly finish.

"I feel like this is more of an underdog situation than the one at Salford when you look at the season they've just had," said Bourouh.

"It's similar to my first year at Salford (in 2022) when we were predicted to finish 11th or 12th (and went on to finish sixth). That's what fans will be predicting for Hull now.

"There are a lot of competitors at this club and we're not going to be happy finishing near the bottom; we want to be competing for the top six.

"Everyone is confident in pre-season but I've got a good feeling about it."