Don't agree with any of that and I seriously doubt anyone in Toronto has ever heard of him. Don't get your enthusiasm tbh.

Do you not think Toronto should be using that money to create junior leagues to create future stars of their own, If not then what's the point in them?

Toronto in SL Is the most exciting, marketable, positive thing to happen in RL for years, typical of RL fans to knock it and simply look for negatives and we wonder why RU has left us for dead. SBW, perhaps the greatest Rugby player ever, wow what a signing, what a statement of intent I am genuinely excited to see him play, not since wanting to watch Wally Lewis, Ray Price and Jonathon Davies have I had such an interest in seeing one player take to the field.

I actually agree with your enthusiasm, to a point.
However, his "star" is on a downward trajectory, with his peak having been 18 months / 2 years ago.
As you say, he is THE most recognisable RL player and will be a great watch in SL but, even taking into account the ability of Toronto's marketing people to make the most of this, the spend just looks way over the top.

You would have to say though that, the future success of RL in N. America wont rest on his shoulders and is utterly dependent on them being able to establish junior RL and to help increase the player pool for the sport and not just be able to field a side of all stars on a Saturday evening.

If they go the "mercenary" route, we will ultimately swap a "heartland" club for an overseas club and actually lose a chunk of junior development with the emergence of each new side.

What a waste of money, seriously. Even if it is good publicity for the club/game it is a very short sighted investment for me, but more fool them.

For that money, they could have there pick of 3 or 4 current top Aussie internationals that would really have made a difference to there team.

Yes, okay, he has been a world class player, he wasn't even deemed a top performer in his last stint with Sydney, he was completely outshone by Cordner and even that was a few years ago....We have heard all this before - What a signing Trent Merrin was - Has he been any better than Arona? The world class Kevin Locke at Salford, what happened there? He ended up at Belle Vue 4 month later... Todd Carney? Greg Bird?

Billy Conway and/or Nigel Bell would have sorted him out.

I'm looking forward to seeing him play in a league where perhaps he will face the least difficult challenge of his career. Robbie Hunter-Paul described it as a "game-changer". I wouldn't go that far. He was a rugby league player first of all, and has dipped in and out during his career. In reality, it is newsworthy but not huge news, given his age. He is banking a fat cheque as a pension by seeing out his career where it started, albeit at a lower level.

Arguably, it does UK league harm, as we are only good enough to get him at the end of his career, whereas the NRL and others got him at his peak. It shows us a bit second-rate, particularly if we are frothing at the idea of getting someone so old.

The biggest effect might be on the players around him, rather than what he does on the pitch, so maybe a good move, if they have the money to spend.

I presume it is also Canadian dollars, which makes it less than it first appears.

Waste of brass for me

There is a danger his out of line earnings will destabilise both codes of rugby internationally. There will be lots of better players (today, not yesterday) who are on a fraction of his pay and will want more. Some daft owner somewhere will try to up stars’ wages and the spiral will commence and ruin clubs.

SBW signing that level of contract will definitely stoke wage inflation and if you were one of the games top players, you would definitely be asking your agent "why is he getting "x" and you've only manged to get me "y".
It's like the early 90's all over again.

Like "Belly", I'm looking forward to seeing him play and hopefully, that will be 3 times this season against Trinity plus, whatever makes it onto TV but, Cant get over the (alleged) contract.

that was my thought, it doesn't take long for clubs to panic buy and put them selves out of control, then there's the players that will cause unrest because of the difference in pay think sod him let him do all the work he gets paid for it

Toronto have just announced that they've mad a big error and actually signed the old blues singer, Sonny Boy Williamson.

Lets be honest who would turn down 100 grand a game? Its crazy money for a player at the back end of his career but moneybags toronto can afford it i just hope they subsidise travel to their home games so we can watch him put ball over dead ball line last time i saw him play in rl at warrington for new zealand

nice

In all seriousness I’m not convinced one bit about SBW, been good but you can say that about quite a few ex NRL players. Personally I would have spent the money on some younger players with future in front of them.

Agree, BLM. Talisman signing that will bring lots of good publicity, but if Toronto are serious about making it in SL they should be investing in bringing on young Canadian talent.

I don’t expect him to be the same player he was six years ago, but he’s still got that star appeal that would make me go to a game just to watch him in the flesh. I’m looking forward to see him play at Belle Vue.

I don’t disagree one bit on that, a big crowd puller, I recently played against Paul Gallen and Adrian Morley something I thought I’d never do in my life time so I get the wow factor but if it goes boobies up I can’t see him playing in the championship.

I can’t either. But for a lot of fans this is a once in a life time opportunity to see a true rugby superstar play at our club. Hopefully it’ll put a few hundred on the gate.

great for the game and great for Toronto
if they have the money they need to make a splash in their first year - well played I say.

You keep saying this but it makes no sense to me

Yes in a circus freak kind of the way it’s interesting but nothing more, it’s a truly naive way of viewing the game IMHO.

He’s too old to build a team around so in RL terms it’s a weak signing to a team that is weak to start with, one that needs depth more than star turns.

However, what really stinks to me is that it one more example of why this club is unsustainable in the future. So I ask you again and please no more fairy stories, when the money runs out and it will, how without any domestic infra structure will Toronto survive?

It won’t, it’s all pie in the sky until somebody makes them address the issue. All other SL clubs create juniors something you seem to support so how can you exempt Toronto, it should have been a pre- requisite imo, it would have been for Fev!

Im not sure how he will cope with week in week out rugby. No doubt Sonnys provided magic moments in both codes but not sure he will provide anything like the impact he used to. Im sure hes also been offered a share in the club and maybe a promotional type of position will take stage .

I don't really buy the idea of x or y journeyman player saying "he's getting that - why can't I?" because the answer is quite simple.

Bigger picture - this money is TWP's to spend, and they've made a decision to go for a big impact, star signing, to generate some razzmatazz around their entry to SL; fair play to them - it might work, it might not, and if it's the latter, it will have absolutely no impact on any other team.

If nothing else, it will probably add a couple of hundred female walk-ups to most games; my OH describes him as the most beautiful man she's ever seen - which obviously didn't bother me at all.

Have Toronto paid their creditors yet?

He will be one of the best players, if not the best player in SL, this is a man who was playing for the All Blacks last week one of the Worlds greatest sporting set ups. What better way to attract young players to the game in Canada than having SBW , a world superstar, playing in your local team. Fishermanscap what makes you so sure the money will run out ? are you privy to the inner financial workings of the TWP set up or are you just clutching at flat cap, whippet owning straws, he is a good few years younger than Danny Brough so should be good for at least another two years. Imagine what a fantastic boost for RL in Wakefield if we were able to sign one of the Worlds great players, imagine the excitement if Danny Cipriani signed for us, then times that by 10 if SBW signed, imagine how many would turn up for a training session at say Stanley Rangers under 10`s if SBW was in attendance. Pull that cap from over your eyes, Batley v Dewsbury in front of 800 fans is not the sustainable future, the razzmatazz of TWP in front of 10000 plus new fans is something to grab hold off, nurture and grow.

This is patently and self-evidently *not* the case.

None of which has any bearing on the positive PR though - which I think will potentially have more impact outside of North America, where he is much more well known.

He is and will be, plus when TWP announce Valentine Holmes as a TWP player then wow what a pairing.