The magic will come, insists rusty Williams
“Replacing No16, Tom Olbison, is No 21… Sonny Bill Williams,” said the enthusiastic stadium announcer to warm applause. It was the 26th minute of Toronto’s first match as a Super League club and they were trailing 10-4.
Williams, perhaps the greatest cross-code player, was centre stage once again. It is a role he was born for after a remarkable career that has harvested two rugby union World Cups with New Zealand and two NRL titles in the 13-man code.
He knocked on with his first touch, but there was no shame in that. Williams had not played a competitive match for 99 days, his last game being the All Blacks’ World Cup semi-final defeat to England in October.
The 34-year-old, deployed at right second-row, remains iconic. He played the remaining 54 minutes in a low-key debut for himself and a generally disappointing one for his team. “From a personal point of view it was great to get back out there,” said Williams, who will play again on Saturday at Salford before flying home to New Zealand for the birth of his fourth child.
“The coach wanted me to play 30 minutes maximum but I felt like I was getting the feel of it. It wasn’t magical but the foundations have been laid. The magic will come.”
His last rugby league match was for Sydney Roosters in 2014, the second stint in the code he holds closest to his heart.
Growing up in Auckland, he dreamed of playing league professionally. Williams, who converted to Islam in 2009 and has refused to wear the Betfred logo on his jersey, came to the fore with Canterbury Bulldogs. He helped them to an NRL title in 2004 before repeating the feat with the Roosters in 2013.
Toronto coach Brian Mcdermott travelled to Japan to meet Williams during the World Cup last Autumn and offered him a two-year marquee deal. Talks progressed well and the contract was signed.
His team’s entry into the British game at the start of the 2017 season has caused much intrigue. They reached the top flight at the end of last season, but have yet to receive central funding, a condition they agreed to upon entry to League One in 2017. Toronto’s share of this year’s money, around £2million, will be divided out by their top-flight rivals and they will again cover the costs of visiting teams’ travel and accommodation. Tensions linger over that and whether the Wolfpack will be given salary cap dispensation to bolster their small squad.
In the first game of this doubleheader, they opened the scoring through Liam Kay before Castleford assumed control with scores from Greg Eden and Grant Millington.
Enter Williams and the knock-on that drew jeers from the stands. Mcdermott said: “That’s part of the theatre I suppose and it got the biggest cheer, didn’t it, when he dropped the ball. He got some game time under his belt, which was invaluable as he hadn’t played rugby league for five years.”
Williams made another handling error before half-time, by which point Castleford had scored further tries through Adam Milner and Michael Shenton to lead 22-4. Peter Mata’utia added a fifth Castleford try but Toronto’s spirits never sagged and they claimed a breakaway score from Hakim Miloudi. Toronto Wolfpack
Castleford Tigers
Interchange Referee