Craig Hall hoping Toronto Wolfpack can play on and secure Super League future

The Canadian franchise are suffering more problems ahead of the planned return to action on August 2 with owner David Argyle conceding long-standing visa issues could see them fail to fulfil their 2020 fixtures.

Toronto’s seven overseas players – including dual-code superstar Sonny Bill Williams – are all on visas that limit them to six months per year in the UK and those have already expired due to the sport being shut since March.

Argyle says they cannot deal directly with the Home Office and, though the club has been in contact with the RFL and Super League for help, he fears they will not be in a position to field a team when games resume following the coronavirus pandemic.

There is little wonder Super League admitted yesterday it is “concerned” by the development while also adding the timing is “unhelpful”; they are due to announce the competition’s revised fixture list this afternoon.

Since being promoted last October, struggling Toronto had lost all six of their league games to remain rooted bottom but had shown signs of life with an impressive Challenge Cup win at Huddersfield Giants before the sport entered its enforced hiatus.

Featherstone Rovers full-back Hall knows all about the various challenges Wolfpack face given he was captain in their inaugural season of 2017, leading them to promotion out of League 1.

“They’ve made great strides since but this year’s been an absolute nightmare so hopefully they’ll get back on their feet and can finish this season,” he said.

“They’ll hopefully get something in place; no one could have predicted what would have happened this year – it’s been absolutely ridiculous – so they will have to try and change their plans to finish it and I hope they can.”

Former Hull FC and Hull KR star Hall scored 24 tries in 25 games after joining Toronto from Wakefield Trinity, claiming their player of the year award before moving on to Leigh Centurions.

Often controversial, Wolfpack have plenty of detractors, including those who are against the idea of expansion, but the 32 year-old said: “It’s something brand new for rugby league so I don’t see why people would be against it.

“Obviously David’s put a lot of money into it, he’s paid his way and they’ve not taken any money off the RFL (or Super League) over here so I don’t see why you have to be negative about it.

“Anybody’s who’s spoken to me about going over there to support their team – I’ve had Hull and Hull KR fans asking – I’ve just told them to go as it’s such a great trip.

“For me, it was brilliant. We went to a brand new city and country and tried to advertise rugby league as much as possible. How it grew week on week over there was unbelievable. The crowds kept coming and you saw the same faces as they loved it.

“Then they were bringing a friend, and they were bringing a friend, too. They love the sport over there and – win or lose – are great. I played there the year after with Hull Kingston Rovers and we beat Toronto but they were still so supportive. I do hope they can get this issue sorted.”

The RFL said: “We’ve been working closely with the relevant authorities to help Toronto with the issues caused by Covid-19, specifically their inability to play home fixtures in Canada, and the resulting need for their overseas players to stay in England for several more months. We are grateful to the Government for recognising these issues in recent days – but appreciate the situation remains challenging for the club.”

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