Toronto Wolfpack want answer over their visa problem sooner rather than later
TORONTO Wolfpack must get an answer sooner rather than later over whether ALL their foreign players must return home - leaving whether they can fulfil the season in doubt.
That includes Sonny Bill Williams.
All seven overseas players, including marquee men Williams and Ricky Leutele, are on permits that limit their presence in the UK to six months.
Their temporary visitor visas normally see them through a season as they spend enough of one in Canada before returning to their homeland.
Now the Covid-19 pandemic and travel restrictions mean they have all stayed on these shores, seeing out the time on their permits at the end of the month, before they restart against Hull KR on August 2.
Rugby Football League officials are working with the Government on a daily basis to try and find an answer to keep them here and available.
But after having already seen them extended twice, there is as yet no solution and players face heading home at the end of the month.
If they do, it is understood they will not be able to return for six months.
Toronto spokesman Martin Vickers said: "We've been raising the issue for three years with the Home Office and because of Covid-19, we didn't have any option but to keep the players in the UK.
"Now we'll need an answer well in advance as we can't tap players on the shoulder and say, 'You're going home tomorrow.'
"We're in daily contact with the RFL and we're hopeful of an answer."
Losing seven players would leave Toronto down to just 14 as winger Liam Kay is heading to Wakefield.
And owner David Argyle spelled out just how serious the issue is.
He said: "It’s always been a big issue for us and it hasn’t been resolved, and if it isn’t resolved now then I don’t see any way we can participate in the rest of this season.
“It’s been suggested to us that we could loan young players from other clubs, but we’re not here to make up the numbers and we never have been. We didn’t hire Brian McDermott as coach to do that.
“We also feel that it would be dangerous for us to fill our squad with other clubs' juniors, especially at a time when players might only have four days’ rest between matches.”
