Toronto coach Brian McDermott says Williams' transition to rugby league will take time
Sunday 19 January 2020 18:14, UK
Toronto coach Brian McDermott says Sonny Bill Williams is not guaranteed to start the new Super League season - even though he will be available.
The former All Black sat out Sunday's pre-season match at Castleford, despite being named in McDermott's 21-man squad, and instead was among the 3,346 spectators at the Mend-a-Hose Jungle to witness a 16-10 victory for his new club.
"Sonny Bill will be available for round one," said McDermott. "Whether we play him or not, we're just deciding on his fitness.
"That journey from rugby union is not to be sniffed at and we're taking an approach he's got to be good for the final third of the season.
"I know there's an anticipation around him but we're not going to rush him and run the risk of him pulling something.
"He's been playing a specific role in a different sport for a number of years and that transition will take some time."
The 34-year-old Williams, whose last match was in the Rugby World Cup in November, will attend the club's pre-season media day at the Etihad Campus on Wednesday and the official Super League launch at Headingley on Friday.
But, even if he plays in the Canadian club's opening league game, against Castleford at Headingley on February 2 - live on Sky Sports - he is set to miss a couple of early-season matches as he plans to fly back to New Zealand for the birth of his fourth child.
"He highlighted this when we recruited him," said McDermott. "I think it's due around round three."
Toronto were also without Jon Wilkin, Chase Stanley and Darcy Lussick on Sunday while Greg Worthington is starting the season on loan at Featherstone which left McDermott with just 18 players, a situation he admits is worrying.
The Wolfpack have no money left on the salary cap but are hoping for dispensation from the Rugby Football League to enable McDermott to bolster his 23-man squad.
"I'm very concerned about the squad depth," said McDermott. "We're on the cap and potentially breaching it - we're working through some processes at the moment as it's live to make sure we're OK at the start of the season.
"We haven't overspent and you don't look at one salary and wince, thinking 'he's getting paid too much'.
"The big fella (Williams) is obviously on a special deal but that's irrelevant to the salary cap.
"We can ask for dispensation, we're looking into it and the RFL are working with us closely."
Toronto's other close-season signings, Brad Singleton and James Cunningham, made their first appearances on Sunday but Wilkin and Lussick missed the game with minor injuries, while Stanley is still in Australia applying for an ancestry visa and unlikely to arrive in time for the season opener.
Meanwhile, McDermott was encouraged by his team's performance in their only pre-season trial.
Gareth O'Brien, Joe Mellor and Blake Wallace got Toronto's tries, while Danny Richardson and Derrell Olpherts replied for Cas.
Michael Shenton's comeback from a nine-month lay-off with an ankle injury was cut short five minutes before half-time when he was the victim of a high tackle.
Wolfpack winger Matty Russell also went off with concussion and the visitors finished the game with 12 men after centre Hakim Miloudi was sent to the sin bin for a high tackle on Lewis Peachey.
Castleford also face a potential disciplinary worry after centre Peter Mata'utia was put on report for a late tackle on Mellor, while second rower Jesse Sene-Lefao went off in the second half with a "dead leg".
