Ex-Leeds Rhinos player Liam Whitton keen to repay trust shown in him by Featherstone Rovers

The youngster signed with the club after a spell with the Leeds Rhinos academy and is looking forward to life in the Championship.

He said: “It feels good, I can’t wait to rip in. I used to go and watch them when I was younger and hopefully, I will be part of the journey to get back into the Super League.

“It gives me a lot of confidence knowing that they didn’t want to lose me to the amateur game and it gives me a lot of confidence knowing that they see something in me. Hopefully I can repay them by giving a 110 per cent.”

Whitton has already made one appearance for Rovers which came in January’s friendly with York City Knights.

The full-back scored two tries that day and he's looking forward to working with head coach James Webster again.

“He’s just really calm coach,” said Whitton.

“If he needs you to do something or he sees you’re not doing something, he will sit down and speak to you. I think that what made me join Fev as well, was knowing there’s a good set up and a good coach to work with.”

The 18-year-old - who turns 19 on Tuesday - is also looking forward to working with some of the more experienced heads in Featherstone’s squad including Dane Chisholm and Craig Hall.

He said: “I’ve watched Dane Chisholm a few times and stuff I’ve seen him do are at times freaky.

"He comes up with big plays at big times. Same with Craig Hall, I watched him in Super League as well. He plays the same position as me so I’ve got a quality player to learn from there.”

Whitton will be joined at Featherstone by fellow Leeds Rhinos academy product Loui McConnell.

“It makes me feel a bit better that there’s someone that I know,” said Whitton.

“Loui’s a quality player, we understand each other’s game and I can’t wait to play alongside him and hopefully win a few games together."

Both players worked under eight-time Super League champion Rub Burrow during their time at Leeds Rhinos. Whitton looks back with fond memories at his time working with the rugby league legend.

He said: “It was absolutely unreal. I remember when I first found out that he was going to be the coach, I was absolutely buzzing.

"It made me want to rip in even more just to make a good impression in front of one of the best players to ever play Super League. His knowledge of the game is absolutely unbelievable.”