Bodene Thompson flies expansion flag ahead of Toronto decision

Toronto back rower Bodene Thompson believes the expansion of rugby league as a whole is of paramount importance in regards to the future of the Canadian club.

A decision will be made later this week as to whether or not the Wolfpack will be allowed to play in Super League next season, after financial and logistical issues led to them withdrawing from this year’s campaign and saw the majority of players not paid their wages.

Thompson is currently playing for Leeds Rhinos on a short-term deal but is contracted to return to the Wolfpack next year should they be granted a place in Super League, and insists the club’s unique and loyal fan base would be one of the greatest losses to the sport.

“It’s just unexplainable how good the crowds are,” he said. “One of my teammates put a photo up of when they first came into the competition and I think they had like 300 people at the game.

“Then there was a photo from the (Championship) Grand Final we played last year and every game was like that, it was 10,000 plus. The fans are just crazy, honestly.

“Getting eyeballs on our game, it generates money and will generate a lot of good things, like sponsors and that kind of stuff, so you can’t put a price on it.

This photo says it all about how Rugby League in North America is going. Playing at Lamport in front of our Canadian fans is one of the best experiences I have ever been involved with. New ownership will make it a better club and better for the game of rugby league worldwide. pic.twitter.com/VnhEiA7Zew

— ricky leutele (@rickyleutele) September 11, 2020

“I could show you a picture from every other game last year, I honestly wouldn’t say there was a game where there wasn’t seven or eight thousand people in the ground. They just love it.

“They’re a different sort of fan. Say if Featherstone scored a try, they would clap just as loud. Then at the end of the game, they’re going to the Featherstone players saying, ‘Thank you very much for coming to Canada, thank you very much for playing, you had a wonderful game’.

“After the game we always interact for a good half an hour and apparently over there, no sports teams interact with the fans.

“So they make signs, we go take photos, might sign some balls or whatever, and they just love it because it doesn’t happen in Canada. They’re just so into the sport.”

The onus will be on the remaining 11 Super League clubs to ultimately decide whether or not Toronto will be allowed back into the competition in 2021.

The opinion of clubs and fans is generally mixed but Thompson reckons the negative views could be changed if the Wolfpack are given the opportunity to welcome their top-flight rivals to Canada for home fixtures next year.

He added: “I’ve got a lot of mates at different clubs who were booking tickets to come over, they were going to bring their families over for the game.

“It was just a new experience, and a lot of my mates from other teams were keen on it because they were keen on a fresh look at rugby league from a different perspective.

“I don’t know how people view Toronto but I think it’s probably been viewed wrong. David (Arglye) is a public man, he likes to be in the media.

“But if teams come over here and see how it’s run, see the game day, how the fans are and how they interact – it’s a different kind of interaction.

“The coaches and all the players – no one wants it to go under. We haven’t been paid since June but we still want it to go forward.

“When the clubs come over to Toronto and play, the atmosphere and everything is just crazy. The expansion – I can’t dwell on it enough how massive it is for the game.

“So all of the coaches and the staff who haven’t been paid, they’re all still backing it because it’s going to be significant.”