York Knights have bolstered their squad ahead of Sunday's Betfred Championship fixture against Widnes Vikings, after announcing the signing of former Championship promotion winner James Cunningham on a two-year deal.
Cunningham joins the Knights after spending 2022 with Betfred Super League side Toulouse Olympique, where he featured as a loose forward, hooker and half-back.
His move to York sees the 28-year-old reunite with York Head Coach Andrew Henderson, who he spent three years working under at London Broncos.
Cunningham established himself as a regular in the Broncos side which won promotion to Betfred Super League in 2018, scoring 13 tries in 27 appearances that year.
Having started his career at Hull FC, Cunningham enjoyed spells at Betfred Super League sides Toronto Wolfpack and Huddersfield Giants before joining Toulouse.
Commenting on the move, Cunningham said: “I’ve got a pretty good relationship with Hendo from our time at London.
“When I saw that Hendo made the move to York, I asked him what the player availability was and if he’d want to sign me again, because I really enjoyed playing under him.
“Hendo is really transparent as a Head Coach, he tells you what he wants and he’ll tell you if you’re doing something wrong and that’s all you can ask as a player.
“I came down on a two-week trial and enjoyed it and Hendo asked me to stay and be part of his vision of earning promotion to Super League. Plus, I’ve had my eye on York for the past couple of years given that it’s a Club that’s been moving forward since winning promotion. I’m just really excited to be part of this journey.”
Knights Head Coach Henderson added: “We’re really happy to have James on board. I've had the pleasure of working with James previously and knowing him as a person, I thought he’d be a good fit for the group.
“From a playing point of view, he’s a Super League standard player, having mainly plied his trade in Super League at some very good clubs, working under some very good coaches. At 28-years-old, he’s still in the prime of his career, so I think he’ll add real value.
“James can showcase himself over the next two years with us and if and when we make the jump to full-time in the future, he could be part of that part as well.
“It was important to find someone with versatility. James can play a number of positions and he’s equally at home at hooker, loose forward, half-back, centre or back-row. With our current squad, that could prove valuable for us this season.”
