Jamie Devitt is determined to show new boss Steve Bruce his worth and establish himself in the Tigers' first-team set-up this season.
The 22-year-old made his first senior appearance for the club as a substitute against Swansea City on the opening day of the 2010/11 season and finished the campaign with 18 appearances in all competitions.
However, last season proved to be somewhat disappointing for the Irishman as he featured just once for the Tigers before loan spells at Bradford City and Accrington in League Two.
But, with just one year remaining on his deal with the Tigers, Devitt is hoping to earn the opportunity to showcase his talents in black and amber this season.
“I hope so,” he said. “I’ve spoken with a few of the lads here and I’m well aware that this is going to be a big year for me.
“I’m in the last year on my contract, so I need to be playing first-team football here rather than sitting in the stands or going out on loan.
“I’ve had numerous loan spells over the years at Darlington, Shrewsbury, Grimsby, Bradford and Accrington and now is the time for me to make an impact in the first-team here.
“All the lads want to be involved in the first-team on a regular basis and I’m no different.
“Hopefully I can show the manager that I’m good enough to be in his plans for the forthcoming season.”
However, much to his disappointment, Devitt suffered a set-back in his plans to impress the new regime as he was unable to fly out with the rest of the squad to the Tigers’ pre-season training camp in Portugal last week due to illness.
“I worked hard throughout the close season to ensure I came back in peak condition ready for pre-season training only to suffer a little bit of a setback which meant I wasn’t able to go with the rest of the squad to the pre-season training camp in Portugal.
“I wasn’t feeling well prior to the trip so went to see the doctor who ruled me out straight away with a throat and mouth infection.
“Thankfully I’m over that now and, after training with the youth team for a couple of days last week, I started my pre-season with the rest of the first-team on Monday.
“I just want to get my head down now and focus on achieving my goals as a Hull City player.”
Now back to full health, Devitt made his first appearance of the Tigers’ pre-season campaign in last night’s 5-0 victory over Winterton Rangers.
It was an impressive 60-minute display from the winger who scored one and created another as Steve Bruce’s side registered a comfortable 5-0 win.
Reflecting on the game, Devitt was pleased with his contribution but was quick to stress the hard work has only just started.
“On a personal level, I was happy with the way I played. I thought I passed the ball well and showed good movement out on the wing,” he added.
“Obviously it was great to get a goal in my first game as well but I won’t be resting on my laurels.
“I want to kick on from here and, as I say, make a real impact at first-team level this season.”