NEW York City Knights prop star Yusuf Sozi has hailed his front-line partners at Huntington Stadium - and in doing so has joined in the clamour for captain Rich Hayes to pen a new deal.

Highly-rated 21-year-old Sozi, who signed from Gateshead Thunder last month, makes up the youthful faction of the Knights' front row alongside big Joe Helme.

And while he reckons they will be able to learn from experienced aces Craig Forysth and Lee Jackson at the head of the pack, he is also hoping to get the chance to line up alongside famed front-rower Hayes, who has been considering retirement.

"It will be nice to play alongside him, definitely," he told the Evening Press. "Players like Craig Forsyth, Richie Hayes and Lee Jackson, who's an international, will definitely help me develop my game. That was one of the things that drew me to York.

"Since I left the Broncos, I've not really had the chance to develop my game as I'd like but having people like that around me will help.

"I want to be playing good, consistent football and I think York will help me do that."

He added: "Hopefully we'll win things and I think we will definitely be up there. We could be the best team in our league (National League Two) and I'm looking forward to it."

Sozi, who is studying for a BA Honours in Business Computing at Leeds Met, is the only Ugandan professional rugby league player in the world.

He moved to southern England aged five - he still considers himself Ugandan - and as a teenager played rugby union for Blackheath and Kent at county level before being spotted by a London Broncos scout and making the switch to league.

"I was more of a league player than a union player," he reasoned. "League suited me better - I did not like the rucking in union, I prefer taking the ball forward."

He worked his way through the Broncos' youth system to the first team - he has designs on returning to Super League - but a lack of opportunities saw the then 20-year-old move north to Batley then Huddersfield, where he played half a season before joining the Yorkshire-based clan in last season's Gateshead side.

"York is definitely a club who are going places," said Sozi, who impressed in his two games against the Knights last season. "Last season, when I was playing for Gateshead it seemed a decent set-up.

"I know a few players and I know of the other players having played against them. It's not going to be hard fitting in, there's a good mixture of decent young players and some experienced players.

"I want to be in a winning team and hopefully it should be this season at York. I can't see why not with the players, the facilities and the set-up we've got."

Updated: 11:12 Thursday, November 13, 2003