A product of the much lauded Crewe Alexandra youth set-up, Hulse scored regularly for the Railwaymen but generally hasn't since
Rob Hulse’s height is one of his weapons, but it nearly ended his career before it started. Having been at hometown club Crewe from age nine, he was pole-axed for a year by a back injury after a late-teen growth spurt.
Upon recovery, he impressed with his work-rate and eye for goal; top scorer at Gresty Road for three seasons, he was signed by Gary Megson’s West Brom for £750,000 in July 2003. His 13 goals helped the Baggies into the top flight but appearances were rarer after Megson left, so a loan switch to second-tier Kevin Blackwell’s Leeds for the final three months of the 2004-05 campaign led to a £1.1m transfer.
His 20 goals in 51 starts endeared him to Elland Road but play-off final defeat led to cost-cutting and a £2.2m move to Neil Warnock’s top-flight Sheffield United in the summer of 2006. He scored eight in 28 league starts for the struggling Blades but broke his leg at Chelsea and was peripheral in 2007-08 as he fought back to full fitness. In July 2008 he moved to Derby for an initial fee of £1.75m – becoming Paul Jewell's tenth signing of the summer.