Million Pound Game has everyone talking

FROM what I’ve seen recently I’d argue that more people have been talking about the Million Pound Game than the Grand Final and I can see why.

It’s a game with so much at stake that it becomes the centre of attention when the emphasis should be on one of the two biggest games of the season – the Grand Final.

Saying that, I thought London thoroughly deserved their win in the Million Pound Game and I’m looking forward to seeing them back in Super League next year.

What I think is great about the Toronto Wolfpack is that everyone is talking about them.

Love them or hate them, everyone has an opinion. That can only be good in trying to market and promote rugby league.

In my final year of playing the game we narrowly avoided the Million Pound Game and it was one of the toughest times of my playing career.

I’d broken my ribs at the time and was standing as a spectator in the match when we sealed our Super League status in dramatic fashion away to Hull KR.

It’s an experience I never want to revisit and, despite the two sides competing in the Championship making up this season’s Million Pound Game, I can imagine how intense being in a game like that would be with all that is at stake.

Fortunately, we seem to be well past that now and are charging into 2019 with renewed optimism of challenging for the top four.

I genuinely believe that under Simon Woolford we have a chance to achieve that.

With Mark ‘Bumper’ Andrews also back to guide us through pre-season I expect the team to be a lot fitter and ready from the get-go.

We recently announced the signing of Reiss Butterworth from Bradford Bulls and I’m really excited to see the see squad that is being assembled and eventually named in Round 1 of the 2019 Betfred Super League. During this gap in the offseason players will be taking a break, but those who need them will also be going in for operations to ensure they’re back in good time for the new campaign. I’m sure the players will have been warned how tough pre-season training

Love them or hate them everyone has an opinion about Toronto Wolfpack

will be this year and this is where as a professional player the ball is in your court.

People will be fighting for positions, you know it’s going to be tough and have to come back in shape or you’re going to be left behind, so whilst there isn’t any evident action, it’s actually one of the most important times of the year.

When I was younger I made sure I enjoyed my time off, you don’t realise until you’re older how tough it is to come back overweight.

Being a regular member of the ‘fat club’ for a number of my younger years, you soon realise you want to get out of there.

When I became a more established player I found that I was using this time for operations to recover from injuries that I’d been playing through for the past year.

When you have someone like Bumper in place they look after you, educate you and give expectations as you know that if you come back out of shape then you’ll be punished.

Pre-season should be disgusting and the hardest thing you ever do in your life, there’s nothing like it.

It’s cold, wet, dark and miserable, the only way you get through it is if you stick together and keep smiling.