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2017 Toronto Wolfpack season

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2017 Toronto Wolfpack season
League 1 Rank1st (Promoted)
Challenge Cup5th Round
2017 recordWins: 22; draws: 1; losses: 2
Points scoredFor: 1,230; against: 304
Team information
CEOCanada Eric Perez
Head CoachEngland Paul Rowley
Captain
StadiumLamport Stadium
Avg. attendance6,992
Agg. attendance76,909
High attendance8,546 (vs Doncaster)
Top scorers
TriesRepublic of Ireland Liam Kay (27)
GoalsEngland Craig Hall (170)
PointsEngland Craig Hall (436)
List of seasons 2018 →

The 2017 Toronto Wolfpack season was the inaugural season for the Toronto Wolfpack rugby league football club. The Wolfpack finished 1st in League 1, winning 20 of their 22 matches, and earned promotion to 2018 Rugby League Championship.

Season review

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April 2016

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After becoming the first North American team to join the Rugby Football League (RFL) it was announced that former Leigh Centurions coach Paul Rowley would be taking the head coach's role for the Canadian team. Shortly after Brian Noble joined the club as the director of rugby. Coach Rowley announced that his assistant manager would be ex Super League and Ireland international Simon Finnigan. The Wolfpack announced that they would be playing their home games at the 9,600 capacity Lamport Stadium.

July 2016

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Toronto announced their first two signings, experienced Wakefield Trinity Wildcats centre Craig Hall and try scoring winger Liam Kay from Leigh Centurions. The Wolfpack later announced that they had signed Warrington Wolves pair, back rower James Laithwaite and halfback Gary Wheeler, in a bid to recruit a competitive squad for the 2017 season.

August 2016

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In August, Toronto announced it had signed its first Canadian player, (and Canada's captain) Sheffield Eagles halfback Rhys Jacks. Following this, young Australian halfback Blake Wallace signed for Toronto from the Illawarra Cutters. Further recruitment in the forwards was made as Wales prop Dan Fleming signed with the Wolfpack. 19-year-old halfback Reece Dean also joined the Toronto ranks from Challenge Cup winners Hull FC, identified as a player for the future by coach Rowley. The Wolfpack also announced that Leigh Centurions duo, loose forward Andrew Dixon and winger Jonathan Pownall, were to join for the 2017 season.

September 2016

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The first signing of September was loose forward Jack Bussey who was signed from RFL Championship side London Broncos. Toronto bolstered their team further by bringing in experienced Ireland international hooker Bob Beswick from Super League side Leigh Centurions. Beswick will take up the role of head of strength and conditioning at Toronto along with his playing duties. Greg Worthington was the next to join Paul Rowley's roster with the powerful centre being sign from the coach's former club Leigh.

October 2016

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Toronto announced their first American player, United States national representative Ryan Burroughs from the Wentworthville Magpies in the Ron Massey Cup. Bradford Bulls player Kurt Haggerty retired from playing rugby league in order to become part of Paul Rowley's coaching staff at Toronto. In the middle of the month the 2017 fixtures were released and it was revealed that Toronto's first ever League match would be away to London Skolars in March 2017. Their first home game would be in Round 6 against Oxford Rugby League in May 2017. Following the fixture release, Toronto announced that they had signed young prop forward Toby Everett from the London Broncos on a season-long loan.

November 2016

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The Wolfpack announced that they had signed former England international and veteran centre Richard Whiting from Super League side Leigh Centurions. In addition to this, young prop forward Steve Crossley signed for the Wolfpack from RFL Championship shield winners Bradford Bulls. Experienced Championship fullback Quentin Laulu-Togaga'e was signed from Sheffield Eagles. Toronto announced the signing of American born prop forward Jerome Veve from the Gold Coast Titans, in addition to this prop Jacob Emmitt signed for the Wolfpack from Swinton Lions. At the 2016 Four Nations final, the Wolfpack held a press conference where it was announced that Tongan prop Fuifui Moimoi had signed a one-year deal with the club from Leigh Centurions. In addition to this it was revealed that Premier Sports had acquired the rights to all of Toronto's matches for the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Furthermore, current Super League champions Wigan Warriors and Challenge Cup winners Hull F.C. will play Toronto in the pre-season friendlies.

December 2016

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During this month, the final 18 trialists from Toronto's Last Tackle campaign traveled to the UK to compete in a friendly match against Brighouse Rangers (Toronto's training partners) in order to win a full-time contract with the Wolfpack. With a record crowd of over 500 at Brighouse, the Wolfpack were victorious 28–26 due to a try in the last 5 minutes from Nathan Campbell. After the match it was announced that Jamaican born Campbell would join the first team squad for the 2017 season, in addition to this Canadian born Quinn Ngawati, the 17 year old stand off, was also offered a contract thanks to a try and 4 goals in the match. The final player to receive a full-time contract was USA born Joe Eichner, a second row forward who had previously played for Jacksonville Axemen.

January 2017

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Due to the liquidation of the Bradford Bulls, prop Adam Sidlow announced that he had signed with Toronto. Trialist Chad Bain (a Canadian born prop) was called up to the first team by Brian Noble following a man of the match performance in the friendly against Brighouse. During the month, Toronto played their first ever pre-season friendly against reigning Challenge Cup champions Hull FC. The Wolfpack took an early lead through halfback Blake Wallace but Hull soon took the lead and won the match 26–20 with further Toronto tries coming from Fuifui Moimoi, Jonathan Pownall and Liam Kay with captain Craig Hall kicking two conversions.

February 2017

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It was announced that Toronto would enter the 2017 Challenge Cup in the 3rd round along with the other League 1 sides. The Wolfpack were drawn away to National Conference League premier side Siddal. They overcame the amateur team 14–6 in tough conditions with American Ryan Burroughs crossing for the first competitive try for the Wolfpack.

March 2017

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Toronto started the League 1 season with a comprehensive 76–0 victory over London Skolars. Prop Fuifui Moimoi was the highlight of the match as he crossed for a hat-trick, the first player to achieve that at Toronto. In the process they helped to achieve the record attendance for the Skolars with 1,542 people coming to see the Wolfpack's first ever league game. Following this the Wolfpack travelled to Cumbria to face Whitehaven. Toronto came away with a 24–10 victory on a muddy and wet surface, captain Craig Hall scored the opening try with Liam Kay, Bob Beswick and Jonny Pownall also crossing for tries. Toronto continued their good start to their first Challenge Cup campaign as they beat RFL Championship side London Broncos in a close fought 30–26 win. The Wolfpack rounded up the month with a 48–21 win at the Keighley Cougars, the match was very close with Keighley 9–8 up at half time however the superior fitness of Toronto and a Jonny Pownall hat-trick saw them win the game.

April 2017

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Toronto announced the signing of former Leeds Rhinos and retired prop forward Ryan Bailey on a season long contract, meanwhile hooker Sean Penkywicz came back from a ban and signed for the club. The Wolfpack continued their winning run in the league with a comprehensive 82–6 victory over Doncaster, loose forward Jack Bussey scored a hat-trick while Fuifui Moimoi marked his return with a brace of tries along with winger Liam Kay and halfback Blake Wallace also scoring two tries each. Captain Craig Hall kicked a record 13 goals in the match. The following week saw Toronto beat North Wales Crusaders 80–0 in a one sided game, the Wolfpack were 60–0 at halftime with Hall scoring a hat-trick of tries and becoming the first player for the Wolfpack to reach 100 points for the club. The club announced the signing of halfback Ryan Brierley from the Huddersfield Giants, Brierley previously played under coach Paul Rowley at Leigh Centurions. April ended with Toronto's first ever loss in a competitive match as they were narrowly defeated 22–29 by Super League side Salford Red Devils in the Challenge Cup.

May 2017

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Team flew back to Toronto for the first ever home game for Toronto at Lamport Stadium on May 6 against Oxford RL. After the game, they immediately flew back to England to prepare for the game on May 12 against Newcastle Thunder. Just after that game, the Wolfpack flew transatlantic again back to Toronto for 2 home games.[2]

Competitions

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  Win   Draw   Loss

Pre-season friendlies

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Date Home Score Away Venue Tries Goals Attendance
22 January 2017 Hull FC 26-20 Toronto Wolfpack KC Stadium Wallace, Moimoi, Pownall, Kay Hall 2/4 3,758

League 1

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Table

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Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1 Toronto Wolfpack 15 15 0 0 916 157 +759 30 League 1 Super 8s
2 Whitehaven 15 13 1 1 469 236 +233 27
3 Barrow Raiders 15 12 1 2 576 264 +312 25
4 York City Knights 15 10 0 5 487 305 +182 20
5 Doncaster 15 9 2 4 449 327 +122 20
6 Newcastle Thunder 15 9 0 6 459 328 +131 18
7 Keighley Cougars 15 7 1 7 590 387 +203 15
8 Workington Town 15 7 1 7 436 370 +66 15
9 North Wales Crusaders 15 7 1 7 366 422 −56 15 League 1 Shield
10 Hunslet 15 7 0 8 418 377 +41 14
11 London Skolars 15 6 1 8 367 453 −86 13
12 Gloucestershire All Golds 15 6 0 9 310 530 −220 12
13 Oxford 15 4 0 11 275 629 −354 8
14 Coventry Bears 15 2 0 13 287 615 −328 4
15 South Wales Ironmen 15 1 0 14 212 654 −442 2
16 Hemel Stags 15 1 0 14 229 792 −563 2
Source: [1]

Results

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Date Rnd Home Score Away Venue Tries Goals Attendance
4 March 2017 1 London Skolars 0-76 Toronto Wolfpack New River Stadium Moimoi (3), Kay (2), Pownall (2), Worthington (2), Beswick, Dixon, Hall, Togaga'e Hall 12/13 1,542
12 March 2017 2 Whitehaven 10-24 Toronto Wolfpack Recreation Ground Beswick, Hall, Kay, Pownall Hall 4/5 643
26 March 2017 3 Keighley Cougars 21-48 Toronto Wolfpack Cougar Park Pownall (3), Sidlow (2), Dixon, Hall, Kay, Wallace Hall 6/9 1,128
9 April 2017 4 Doncaster 6-82 Toronto Wolfpack Keepmoat Stadium Bussey (3), Kay (2), Moimoi (2), Wallace (2), Beswick, Jacks, Togaga'e, Whiting, Worthington Hall 13/14 943
14 April 2017 5 North Wales Crusaders 0-80 Toronto Wolfpack Racecourse Ground Hall (3), Togaga'e (2), Wheeler (2), Jacks, Kay, Moimoi, Penkywicz, Sidlow, Wallace, Worthington Hall 12/14 590
6 May 2017 6 Toronto Wolfpack 62-12 Oxford Lamport Stadium Brierley (2), Dixon (2), Pownall (2), Whiting (2), Burroughs, Hall, Wallace, Worthington Hall 7/12 6,281
12 May 2017 7 Newcastle Thunder 22-40 Toronto Wolfpack Kingston Park Brierley (2), Beswick, Kay, Pownall, Togaga'e, Wallace Hall 6/7 1,087
20 May 2017 8 Toronto Wolfpack 70-2 Barrow Raiders Lamport Stadium Togaga'e (3), Brierley (2), Bailey, Dixon, Penkywicz, Pick, Wallace, Wheeler, Worthington Hall 11/12 7,144
3 June 2017 9 Toronto Wolfpack 54-12 Coventry Bears Lamport Stadium Kay (3), Dixon (2), Moimoi (2), Beswick, Brierley, Jacks Hall 7/10 7,236
11 June 2017 10 South Wales Ironmen 0-66 Toronto Wolfpack The Wern Worthington (3), Burroughs (2), Hall (2), Whiting (2), Brierley, Bussey, Penkywicz, Pownall Hall 7/13 697
18 June 2017 11 Workington Town 12-58 Toronto Wolfpack Derwent Park Brierley (2), Hall (2), Pownall (2), Worthington (2), Bussey, Penkywicz Hall 9/10 835
24 June 2017 12 Toronto Wolfpack 56-12 Hunslet Lamport Stadium Togaga'e (3), Pownall (2), Brierley, Hall, Kay, Laithwaite, Penkywicz, Whiting Hall 6/11 6,042
1 July 2017 13 Toronto Wolfpack 64-22 York City Knights Lamport Stadium Kay (5), Pownall (2), Beswick, Bussey, Hall, Penkywicz, Togaga'e Hall 8/12 5,646
8 July 2017 14 Toronto Wolfpack 62-10 Gloucestershire All Golds Lamport Stadium Hall (2), Beswick, Burroughs, Crossley, Jacks, Moimoi, Pownall, Togaga'e, Whiting, Worthington Hall 9/11 7,139
15 July 2017 15 Toronto Wolfpack 74-16 Hemel Stags Lamport Stadium Hall (4), Wallace (3), Beswick, Crossley, Fleming, Kay, Moimoi, Pownall Hall 11/13 7,247

Super 8's

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Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Promotion or qualification
1 Toronto Wolfpack 22 20 1 1 1164 243 +921 41 Promoted as Champions
2 Barrow Raiders 22 18 1 3 731 381 +350 37 Play-off semi-finals
3 Whitehaven 22 17 1 4 656 349 +307 35
4 York City Knights 22 12 1 9 641 460 +181 25
5 Newcastle Thunder 22 12 0 10 595 521 +74 24
6 Doncaster 22 10 3 9 593 492 +101 23 Eliminated
7 Keighley Cougars 22 10 2 10 728 565 +163 22
8 Workington Town 22 9 1 12 532 621 −89 19
Source: [2]
Date Rnd Home Score Away Venue Tries Goals Attendance
30 July 2017 16 York City Knights 26-16 Toronto Wolfpack Bootham Crescent Beswick, Brierley, Hall Hall 2/3 2,602
6 August 2017 17 Workington Town 0-68 Toronto Wolfpack Derwent Park Wallace (4), Hall (2), Pownall (2), Emmitt, Kay, Laithwaite, Togaga'e Hall 10/13 592
13 August 2017 18 Keighley Cougars 26-26 Toronto Wolfpack Cougar Park Kay, Pownall, Togaga'e, Whiting, Worthington Hall 3/5 922
19 August 2017 19 Toronto Wolfpack 50-0 Newcastle Thunder Lamport Stadium Kay (3), Togaga'e (2), Hall, Jacks, Moimoi, Worthington Hall 6/9 7,522
2 September 2017 20 Toronto Wolfpack 36-18 Whitehaven Lamport Stadium Whiting (2), Beswick, Kay, Pownall, Togaga'e, Wheeler Hall 4/7 6,134
9 September 2017 21 Toronto Wolfpack 26-2 Barrow Raiders Lamport Stadium Wallace (2), Togaga'e, Whiting Hall 5/5 7,972
16 September 2017 22 Toronto Wolfpack 26-14 Doncaster Lamport Stadium Pownall (3), Kay, Wallace Hall 3/5 8,546

Challenge Cup

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Date Rnd Home Score Away Venue Tries Goals Attendance
25 February 2017 3rd Siddal 6-14 Toronto Wolfpack Siddal Sports & Community Centre Burroughs, Sidlow, Worthington Hall 1/2, Wallace 0/1 1,023
17 March 2017 4th London Broncos 26-30 Toronto Wolfpack Trailfinders Sports Ground Bussey, Hall, Jacks, Kay, Pownall Hall 5/6 873
23 April 2017 5th Salford Red Devils 29-22 Toronto Wolfpack AJ Bell Stadium Brierley, Kay, Moimoi, Togaga'e Hall 3/4 1,318

  Win   Draw   Loss

Players

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Statistics include Challenge Cup, League 1, and Super 8's matches.

No Player Position Previous Club Apps Tries Goals DG Points
1 Samoa Quentin Laulu-Togaga'e Fullback Sheffield Eagles 22 20 0 0 80
2 England Jonathan Pownall Wing Leigh Centurions 24 26 0 0 104
3 England Greg Worthington Centre Leigh Centurions 22 15 0 0 60
4 England Craig Hall Centre Wakefield Trinity 25 24 170 0 436
5 Republic of Ireland Liam Kay Wing Leigh Centurions 21 27 0 0 108
6 Australia Blake Wallace Stand-off Illawarra Cutters 19 17 0 0 68
7 Canada Rhys Jacks Scrum-half Sheffield Eagles 22 6 0 0 24
8 Tonga Fuifui Moimoi Prop Leigh Centurions 20 12 0 0 48
9 Republic of Ireland Bob Beswick Hooker Leigh Centurions 23 10 0 0 40
10 Wales Daniel Fleming Prop Bradford Bulls 15 1 0 0 4
11 England Andrew Dixon Second-row Leigh Centurions 15 7 0 0 28
12 England James Laithwaite Second-row Warrington Wolves 17 2 0 0 8
13 England Jack Bussey Loose forward London Broncos 20 7 0 0 28
14 England Gary Wheeler Stand-off Warrington Wolves 13 4 0 0 16
15 United States Ryan Burroughs Wing Wentworthville Magpies 11 5 0 0 20
16 England Shaun Pick Second-row Featherstone Rovers 8 1 0 0 4
17 England Richard Whiting Second-row Leigh Centurions 22 11 0 0 44
19 England Steve Crossley Prop Bradford Bulls 20 2 0 0 8
20 United States Tom Dempsey Prop 3 0 0 0 0
21 England Adam Sidlow Prop Bradford Bulls 22 4 0 0 16
23 England Toby Everett Prop London Broncos 3 0 0 0 0
24 Wales Sean Penkywicz Hooker Leigh Centurions 13 6 0 0 24
25 England Ryan Bailey Prop Warrington Wolves 8 1 0 0 4
26 United States Joe Eichner Second-row Jacksonville Axemen 1 0 0 0 0
27 Scotland Ryan Brierley Scrum-half Leigh Centurions 12 13 0 0 52
28 Canada Quinn Ngawati Second-row BC Bulldogs 2 0 0 0 0
29 Wales Jacob Emmitt Prop Swinton Lions 21 1 0 0 4

Transfers

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In

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Nat Name Position Signed from Date
England Craig Hall Centre Wakefield Trinity Wildcats July 2016
England Liam Kay Wing Leigh Centurions July 2016
England James Laithwaite Second-row Warrington Wolves July 2016
England Gary Wheeler Stand off Warrington Wolves July 2016
Canada Rhys Jacks Scrum half Sheffield Eagles August 2016
Australia Blake Wallace Scrum half Illawarra Cutters August 2016
Wales Dan Fleming Prop Bradford Bulls August 2016
England Reece Dean Stand off Hull F.C. August 2016
England Andrew Dixon Second-row Leigh Centurions August 2016
England Jonathan Pownall Wing Leigh Centurions August 2016
England Jack Bussey Loose forward London Broncos September 2016
Ireland Bob Beswick Hooker Leigh Centurions September 2016
England Greg Worthington Centre Leigh Centurions September 2016
United States Ryan Burroughs Centre Wentworthville Magpies October 2016
England Toby Everett Prop London Broncos October 2016
England Richard Whiting Centre Leigh Centurions November 2016
England Steve Crossley Prop Bradford Bulls November 2016
Samoa Quentin Laulu-Togaga'e Fullback Sheffield Eagles November 2016
Wales Jacob Emmitt Prop Swinton Lions November 2016
United States Jerome Veve Prop Gold Coast Titans November 2016
Tonga Fuifui Moimoi Prop Leigh Centurions November 2016
Jamaica Nathan Campbell Fullback Duhaney Park Red Sharks December 2016
Canada Quinn Ngawati Stand off B.C. Bulldogs December 2016
United States Joe Eichner Second-row Jacksonville Axemen December 2016
England Adam Sidlow Prop Bradford Bulls January 2017
Canada Chad Bain Prop Brantford Broncos January 2017
England Shaun Pick Prop Featherstone Rovers January 2017
England Luke Menzies Prop Salford Red Devils January 2017
England Ryan Bailey Prop Retirement April 2017
England Sean Penkywicz Hooker Retirement April 2017
England Ryan Brierley Scrum half Huddersfield Giants April 2017

Out

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Nat Name Position Club Signed Date
United States Jerome Veve Prop Gold Coast Titans January 2017
England Luke Menzies Prop Professional Wrestling April 2017
England Reece Dean Centre Doncaster May 2017

Milestones

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References

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  1. ^ "Craig Hall Named As Wolfpack Team Captain". Toronto Wolfpack. 18 January 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ Davidson, Neil (2017-05-04). "Toronto Wolfpack hope home debut hooks in new fans". Toronto Star.
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