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Our west coast eyes have been watching the goings-on south of the border with PRO Rugby North America and the far-afield machinations of Super Rugby with appropriate interest.
After all, the two rugby union competitions feature the the game we know best. But as all our attention has focused on those two leagues, a third entry has been bubbling along: the Rugby Football League.
Now they’re ready to make their Canadian move.
The 13-a-side version of professional rugby will debut in Toronto a year from now. A big press conference is slated for next week, where it will be announced that Toronto will have a team playing in League 1 , the third tier of rugby league in the UK. The team has apparently already inked a handful of players to contracts.
The aim is to make the elite Super League by the summer of 2019. The Super League is where all the money is at. There’s big time exposure on Sky Sports in the UK, and there’s solid exposure down under too; Australia and the north of England are the global hotbeds of rugby league.
The Toronto Star has been on the case for a while, confirming much of the details and interested parties last fall.
Most Canadians know the fifteen-a-side rugby union. To the untrained eye, league and union might seem the same, but without much viewing, you’ll see the differences. Advocates of both games will tell you the other is plodding and boring. To this writer, both games have their merits and both have potential to appeal to a North American sports audience.
Whatever it is, both Eric Perez, the Canadian driving the new team, and the Rugby Football League, who run the professional game in the UK, believe Toronto is the right place to start. Perez is a guy who, according to the Star, went to the UK and fell in love with league. It’s a game which North American fans will quickly understand and get into.
(Like rugby sevens, the ball is seemingly always in play in rugby league. That’s a key point for fans who often look at rugby union and say “I have no idea what’s going on.”
The RFL, the British governing body, clearly believes in the project. They’ve got aims for the American sports market, just like we know Super Rugby does. The RFL’s English rugby union counterparts have big dreams too – they played a game in New Jersey on St. Patrick’s day.
There’s also apparently Australian money backing this Toronto project.LEEDS, UNITED KINGDOM - MARCH 13: Brian Noble, coach of Wigan Warriors looks on during the engage Super League match between Leeds Rhinos and Wigan Warriors at Headingley Stadium on March 13, 2009 in Leeds, England. (Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images)
The early evidence for rugby league’s potential in Toronto has been strong. The Canadian Wolverines, the national team, has played a handful of games over the past couple summers at Lamport Stadium and has drawn crowds upwards of 7,000. The fans may not know much about what’s going on, but like last month’s successful Canada Sevens in Vancouver, Canadian sports fans are looking for a fun atmosphere and are ready to be impressed.
As for the team itself, it’s going to be run by a pair of strong names. Brian Noble will be Director of Rugby. He’s got a long, solid resume of success coaching and playing in the UK – “a Pat Quinn-type” is how BC Bulldogs head coach and Canada Wolverines assistant coach Andy Blackburn described him to me. Paul Rowley will be the coach; he’s another with a strong track record, having played in England for many years and in recent seasons coaching the Leigh Centurions. He resigned from his position in February.
The team will play home stands in four week blocks and then travel to the UK and France for four-week long road trips. Given how Canadian fans are used to their teams being on the road for weeks at a time, that won’t be too strange. It will be for the players, most of whom will come from the UK. (There will be a Canadian scouting operation, as finding a new source of talent is also very appealing for the RFL.)
The logistics, no doubt, are challenging. The costs will be high, especially while the team is outside the Super League. But it’s going to be interesting to watch.
http://blogs.theprovince.com/2016/04...-toronto-team/
After all, the two rugby union competitions feature the the game we know best. But as all our attention has focused on those two leagues, a third entry has been bubbling along: the Rugby Football League.
Now they’re ready to make their Canadian move.
The 13-a-side version of professional rugby will debut in Toronto a year from now. A big press conference is slated for next week, where it will be announced that Toronto will have a team playing in League 1 , the third tier of rugby league in the UK. The team has apparently already inked a handful of players to contracts.
The aim is to make the elite Super League by the summer of 2019. The Super League is where all the money is at. There’s big time exposure on Sky Sports in the UK, and there’s solid exposure down under too; Australia and the north of England are the global hotbeds of rugby league.
The Toronto Star has been on the case for a while, confirming much of the details and interested parties last fall.
Most Canadians know the fifteen-a-side rugby union. To the untrained eye, league and union might seem the same, but without much viewing, you’ll see the differences. Advocates of both games will tell you the other is plodding and boring. To this writer, both games have their merits and both have potential to appeal to a North American sports audience.
Whatever it is, both Eric Perez, the Canadian driving the new team, and the Rugby Football League, who run the professional game in the UK, believe Toronto is the right place to start. Perez is a guy who, according to the Star, went to the UK and fell in love with league. It’s a game which North American fans will quickly understand and get into.
(Like rugby sevens, the ball is seemingly always in play in rugby league. That’s a key point for fans who often look at rugby union and say “I have no idea what’s going on.”
The RFL, the British governing body, clearly believes in the project. They’ve got aims for the American sports market, just like we know Super Rugby does. The RFL’s English rugby union counterparts have big dreams too – they played a game in New Jersey on St. Patrick’s day.
There’s also apparently Australian money backing this Toronto project.LEEDS, UNITED KINGDOM - MARCH 13: Brian Noble, coach of Wigan Warriors looks on during the engage Super League match between Leeds Rhinos and Wigan Warriors at Headingley Stadium on March 13, 2009 in Leeds, England. (Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images)
The early evidence for rugby league’s potential in Toronto has been strong. The Canadian Wolverines, the national team, has played a handful of games over the past couple summers at Lamport Stadium and has drawn crowds upwards of 7,000. The fans may not know much about what’s going on, but like last month’s successful Canada Sevens in Vancouver, Canadian sports fans are looking for a fun atmosphere and are ready to be impressed.
As for the team itself, it’s going to be run by a pair of strong names. Brian Noble will be Director of Rugby. He’s got a long, solid resume of success coaching and playing in the UK – “a Pat Quinn-type” is how BC Bulldogs head coach and Canada Wolverines assistant coach Andy Blackburn described him to me. Paul Rowley will be the coach; he’s another with a strong track record, having played in England for many years and in recent seasons coaching the Leigh Centurions. He resigned from his position in February.
The team will play home stands in four week blocks and then travel to the UK and France for four-week long road trips. Given how Canadian fans are used to their teams being on the road for weeks at a time, that won’t be too strange. It will be for the players, most of whom will come from the UK. (There will be a Canadian scouting operation, as finding a new source of talent is also very appealing for the RFL.)
The logistics, no doubt, are challenging. The costs will be high, especially while the team is outside the Super League. But it’s going to be interesting to watch.
http://blogs.theprovince.com/2016/04...-toronto-team/
