Kyle Joseph didn’t have to look far to find a friendly face when he joined Hull City from Blackpool in January.
As a kid growing up on Merseyside, the forward met Joe Gelhardt – widely known as Joffy – when the pair were just 14.
“We played for Sefton Schoolboys, which was the local council side,” explains the 23-year-old.
“I then joined Wigan Under-14s, and when I walked through the door he was pretty much the first person I saw – we’ve been mates ever since.”
NEW COLOURS: Kyle Joseph in action for Hull City
PICTURE: Alamy
Childhood chums
The childhood chums have taken different paths to Humberside.
Gelhardt, a teen sensation at Wigan Athletic, joined Leeds United for £1m in 2020 and made 35 Premier League appearances before the arrival of manager Daniel Farke saw opportunities dwindle.
Joseph, an unwitting beneficiary of the Latics’ financial collapse, scored five times in his first 18 appearances and was snapped up by Swansea in 2021.
Largely overlooked, he was loaned to Cheltenham and Oxford United before making a permanent switch to Blackpool two years later.
Now their careers have converged once again, with Gelhardt joining the Tigers on loan just five days before Joseph completed a £2.5m transfer from Bloomfield Road.
“It’s been amazing to have Joffy here,” says Joseph, who scored eight goals in 24 League One games for the Seasiders this term to clinch a return to the Championship.
Connection
“We’re really close off the pitch, and so are our girlfriends back home.
“They’ve grown up with each other from school and live literally ten minutes away from each other.
“On the pitch as well, we have that connection.
“The amount of goals me and him scored together through the academy was outrageous and, even now, we literally don’t need to look where the other person is.
“Personally, it made coming here so much easier knowing I’d have someone like that, but as a mate it’s just really nice to see him feeling happy and doing well.
“Everyone knows he’s had a bit of a struggle at Leeds over the past couple of years, but that can happen at massive clubs.
“They’ve got big-name players on Premier League wages, lads who they might have expected to leave still playing, changes of manager and all that stuff.
“In those situations, I think it’s easy to see a young kid and just kind of put him to the side.
“But that’s no reflection on Joffy’s ability and I think you can see that by the way he’s playing at Hull.
“He’s a class player and I’m made up for him.”
Developing
Joseph knows all too well how it feels to be sidelined.
In two years at Swansea, he played for a grand total of 107 Championship minutes.
Now four years older and 130 games wiser, does he feel better-equipped to tackle the second tier?
“Yeah, 100 per cent,” says Joseph, who had already made ten appearances for the Tigers ahead of the weekend’s fixtures.
“I was 19 when I joined Swansea and the plan was never for me to make an instant impact.
“It was about developing and learning under the manager, which at the time was Steve Cooper.
“Unfortunately, Steve left a couple of weeks later and things never really worked out after that.
“It was a shame, but that’s nothing bad against Swansea.
“I loved my time there, loved the people there.
“It’s an amazing place to live, with some of the friendliest people I’ve ever met.
“I’ve still got friends down there now so I wouldn’t change it.
“I was just young and probably wasn’t ready to compete at that level.
“But I’ve played a lot of games since and I felt a lot more prepared and a lot more comfortable in myself when I came here in January.”
OLD DAYS: At former club Blackpool
Decorated
Joseph’s best form at Blackpool came following the arrival of Steve Bruce, who replaced Neil Critchley in September.
The 64-year-old, who captained Manchester United to three Premier League titles, is one of the most experienced and decorated coaches in the business, with four promotions to the Premier League (including two with Hull) and over 1,000 games in management under his belt.
However, stints at Aston Villa, Newcastle United and West Bromwich Albion ended badly and Bruce was publicly savaged by former Toon player Dwight Gayle, who claimed in a recent podcast that Bruce told the players he “didn’t do” tactics.
Naturally, Joseph disagrees.
“Steve’s managed 1,050 games, so he can’t be that useless,” he says.
“Obviously, players will have their own opinion on him, as all players are entitled to.
“Only lads at Newcastle will know what happened there and you’ve got to respect that in terms of what Dwight Gayle said.
RESPECT: Steve Bruce
Amazing
“But, personally, I thought he was a great manager.
“Him and his assistant, Steve Agnew, were really good for Blackpool and they were amazing for my development.
“We felt we were coached really well and really thoroughly.
“I think if you ask any of the lads at Blackpool, they feel the same. They speak really glowingly of Steve and how much they love playing under him and under the staff.
“My opinion – and it is just mine – is that he’s an amazing manager.
“Obviously, some people will have different opinions but the one thing nobody can dispute is his record.
“That speaks for itself.”
POSITIVE: Ruben Selles
Relegation battle
Joseph swapped a League One play-off push at Blackpool for a Championship relegation battle at Hull, but it is one that looks increasingly likely to be won.
The Tigers had lost just one of their last seven games pre-weekend and were tenth in the form table since manager Ruben Selles quit cash-strapped Reading to replace the hapless Tim Walter in early December.
“The gaffer has done a really good job here, but that doesn’t surprise me,” says the former Scotland Under-21 international.
“If you look how well he did at Reading with probably both hands tied behind his back, that’s testament to how positive he is as a person.
“Even with the situation that they were in, he embraced it.
“His teams were always really aggressive and played on the front foot.
“That’s part of what made me want to come here and he’s been brilliant from the moment I walked through the door.
“At the same time, though, we haven’t achieved anything yet.
“From now until the end of the season nobody will be doing anything but looking forward to the next game and the next three points.
“I know it’s a cliche, but it’s the only way.”
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