Featherstone Rovers Hardaker joined
Featherstone Rovers from the local amateur side
Featherstone Lions after leaving
Carleton High School in
Pontefract. He previously played for his hometown club
Knottingley Rockware before signing professional terms with Featherstone Rovers. He scored a hat-trick of tries on his 2010 début for Featherstone Rovers against
Hunslet, and went on to score 22 tries in 14 games in all competitions in his début season. This included two tries in Featherstone Rovers' extra-time 22–23 defeat by
Halifax in the
Co-operative Grand Final. At the end of the season he was named joint Co-operative Championship Young Player of the Year, along with
Gareth Moore of
Batley Bulldogs.
Leeds Hardaker signed for
Leeds in October 2010 for a transfer fee of around £60,000 and was awarded the number 27 jersey. He trained with the Rhinos senior squad during pre-season and made two appearances in pre-season friendlies, before returning to
Featherstone Rovers on a dual contract for the 2011 season. He made five further appearances for Featherstone, scoring five tries. In March 2011, due to injuries to Leeds wingers
Ben Jones-Bishop &
Lee Smith, Hardaker was called back to the club & made his
Super League début against
St Helens at
Headingley. Hardaker scored a try in Leeds' 30–16 loss. Hardaker then featured sporadically for Leeds throughout the season; arguably his best match was in the playoff game against
Huddersfield, in which he scored a hat-trick and picked up the man of the match award in a 34–28 victory. He also scored the final try in the
2011 Super League Grand Final as Leeds defeated
St Helens 32–16 at
Old Trafford, Manchester. Hardaker was handed the number 4 jersey for the 2012 season, taking over from long-time servant
Keith Senior. However, following an injury to
Brent Webb, he moved to fullback for the latter half of the season and showed excellent form as Leeds successfully defended their
Super League title. Hardaker was awarded the 2012 Super League Young Player of the Year. He played in the
2012 Challenge Cup Final defeat by the
Warrington Wolves at
Wembley Stadium. He played in the
2012 Super League Grand Final victory over
Warrington at
Old Trafford. Hardaker was part of the Leeds squad that won the
2014 Challenge Cup Final with victory over
Castleford at
Wembley Stadium. He earned his first selection in the
Super League Dream Team at the end of the season. His form also saw him earn a recall to the England squad for the
2014 Four Nations, however, he did not feature in the tournament. Hardaker's form continued in 2015, and he was part of the Leeds squad that won the
2015 Challenge Cup, with victory over
Hull Kingston Rovers at
Wembley Stadium. At the end of the season, he was named
Man of Steel, the first Leeds player to win the award since
Iestyn Harris in 1998. He played in the
2015 Super League Grand Final victory over the
Wigan Warriors at
Old Trafford. In June 2016, Hardaker requested a transfer from Leeds following the clubs poor form which saw them sitting bottom of the league table.
Penrith (loan) On 23 June 2016 Hardaker signed for the NRL team
Penrith on loan for the remainder of the 2016 season in a swap for
James Segeyaro. He débuted for the Penrith club in Round 17 against the
West Tigers in the Penrith's 26–34 loss. Three weeks later, he scored his first career NRL try in Round 20 in the Penrith's 31–12 win over the
Brisbane Broncos at
Lang Park on 22 July. Zak played with Penrith all the way to the semi-finals where the clubs 2016 NRL season ended. He finished off his maiden year in the
NRL playing in 11 games for the
Penrith Panthers (including two finals games), scoring one try and assisting three others.
Castleford On 8 November 2016, it was announced that he had signed a one-year loan deal to play for
Castleford, with a deal in place for Castleford to sign him for an "already agreed fee" should all parties agree to it at the end of his loan agreement. At the end of the
Warrington Wolves v Castleford Tigers match on the 24 February 2017, Zak donated his man of the match cheque to the Prince of Wales Hospice in
Pontefract. On 27 June 2017, it was announced that he had joined Castleford on a permanent basis, signing a four-and-a-half-year contract with the club. A transfer fee of £150,000 was agreed between all parties.
Wigan On 18 May 2018, it was announced that he had joined
Wigan on a four-year contract commencing upon completion of his suspension from the sport. He made his debut for the team in Wigan's pre-season friendly against the
Salford Red Devils on 20 January 2019, scoring 12-points in the 28–18 victory. in 2019 Hardaker played in the
2020 Super League Grand Final for Wigan which the club lost 8–4. With less than a minute to go in the game with the scores at 4-4, Hardaker had a penalty goal attempt from 40 yards out to win the game for Wigan. Hardaker missed the conversion and St Helens went down the other end to score the match winning try on the full-time siren. In round 8 of the
2021 Super League season, Hardaker was sent off and later suspended for two matches after headbutting
Catalans Dragons player
Sam Tomkins in Wigan's 48-0 loss. On 21 April 2022 Hardaker was sacked by Wigan for disciplinary issues.
Leeds On 26 April 2022, it was announced that Hardaker had rejoined
Leeds for the remainder of the 2022 Super League season. On 24 September 2022, Hardaker played for Leeds in their 24-12 loss to
St Helens RFC in the
2022 Super League Grand Final.
Leigh On 20 October 2022, Hardaker signed a contract to join the newly promoted
Leigh side. The move was seen as controversial due to Hardaker leaving Wigan only months earlier citing homesickness and travel time between where the club was located and its proximity to Yorkshire. On 12 August 2023, Hardaker played for Leigh in their 17-16 Challenge Cup final victory over Hull Kingston Rovers. Hardaker played 23 games for Leigh in the 2023 Super League season as the club finished fifth on the table and qualified for the playoffs. Hardaker played in their elimination playoff loss against Hull Kington Rovers. In July 2024,
Hull F.C. announced that Hardaker would join the club from the start of the 2025 season on a two-year contract. Hardaker played 25 games for Leigh in the 2024 Super League season which saw the club finish fifth on the table. Hardaker played in the clubs semi-final loss to Wigan.
Hull F.C. On 8 July 2024 it was reported that he had signed for
Hull F.C. in the
Super League on a two-year deal. In round 1 of the 2025 Super League season, Hardaker made his club debut for Hull F.C. in their upset victory over
Catalans Dragons. ==International career==