But with him out on loan at London it just puts Toronto in the same boat as Leigh?

18 from the UK
9 from the NRL/Australia
The full coaching staff and Director of rugby are from the UK
Owned by an Aussie

Leaving only one Canadian left who is the founder of the club?

Ahh, it not a genuine question then. He's on a seasons loan, with the intention I imagine, that he'll return to TWP along with Burroughs.

It does pretty much leave them in the same boat as Leigh yes, and that's exactly the point I'm making. Leigh fans (and others) are quick to criticise the lack of Canadians in their squad, whilst producing very little themselves. The difference is 2 years vs 140 years.

I suppose the question is, what are you and others expecting after 2 years in the way of Canadians? Is it realistic to expect them to have 5/6 Canadians in their squad after 2 years, or a full Canadian coaching setup? Of course not, because it takes time.

I used Melbourne as an example earlier in the thread. A huge city very similar to Toronto, except they're in a country where RL is already huge (albeit not in Melbourne itself). In 20+ years, they've produced only a handful of Victorians that have made the grade. It's extremely tough, and to produce more than the odd player, you need the local grassroots infrastructure in place over a number of years. Patience is key here, and it seems not a lot of UK fans are willing to give them the time for whatever reason.

Don't think I'm arguing by the way I actually agree with some of your points, one of my problems is with how they've bought there way into the Championship and whats looking like the middle 8's. I appreciate they were never going to have a full squad of Canadians who compete like the current squad is but there's no point in them being a Canadian outfit as they're not, they're a team overseas players. In all debates I've seen Catalans and Toulouse are both disregarded, how popular is RL in France - more popular than it is in Toronto for sure but not by much I'd say! -

Catalans - 19 French players in the side
Toulouse - 16 French players in the side

I'm sure I heard Gorden Tallis say the other day it took Queensland 70 years to beat New South Wales in one form or another.

Of course they're a side of overseas players, what else could they possibly be at this moment in time after 2 years? The point is expansion, some will agree with expansion, some wont, that's fine), and getting a foothold in North America, which will hopefully pay dividends in the future.

You've already without realising it made the point for me. They've "bought their way into the Championship" - so what you're saying is that they're bringing money into the game? Money into a game desperately in need of more money? That's great then isn't it?

Also, what do you think other clubs do to enable them to compete & improve - they invest! Why are you calling out Toronto for spending money, other clubs reply on their chairman's money too, in fact most clubs are reliant upon their chairman's money to survive. What's the difference?


I shouldn't need to point this out to you, but Rugby League has had a strong foothold in France since the 1930's. They had a fairly decent infrastructure (a semi-pro league) already when Catalans joined SL in 2006, and we've seen improvements in player numbers ever since. Using France as an example isn't a fair comparison.

I've no idea if 70 years is accurate or not, but that's exactly the point I'm making. Why are we (as a sport) holding TWP/Canada to such unrealistic expectations when every other precedent for expansion says it'll take decades not a couple of years to bear fruit.

I agree with expansion but I think they've signed an excessive amount of overseas players for a club thats been around 2 years. Investing money isn't a bad thing but buying your way to the top is and it doesn't do anything for the game in my opinion.

You're right, other clubs do rely of their chairmans money but how many other clubs have you seen sign 9 NRL grade players within 2 years?

After a quick read up about RL in France, would you say 30,000 participants would be classed as "strong"? I would also say you couldn't possibly say it has a strong foothold in France when the sport was once banned there and it is often pointed out in the media that the sport has struggled to recover.

So you don`t want them to spend money on players? Because it`s unfair on a small town club like yours that don`t have the interest of a big money backer or anywhere near enough fans to even spend up to the cap? So you are throwing your teddy of the cot like a petulant child? They are spending money in the hope of success as every other club that can afford to do so does.

That's exactly what he & others are doing .

"Eric, please don't spend money that you have readily available on improving your club because you'll overtake us and it's not fair"


They have to adhere to the same salary cap and non-fed player rules as the other clubs (FYI Trinty1icon_cool.gif

Appreciate the support; there clearly is a double standard at play.

Well all I will say DGM, ScouseViking and Canoeman... there isn't ANYTHING admirable about buying success.

How many canadians play for the Raptors?

Regards

King James

None, from what I can see but that's no justification just because another club has done it

Sounds like sour grapes now, if Trinity's owner wanted to pump a load of cash in would you turn your back on them?