Where Are They Now? Toronto Wolfpack’s final team on anniversary of last match

It’s five years to the day since Toronto Wolfpack beat Huddersfield Giants 18-0 in the Fifth Round of the Challenge Cup – the match which would prove the Canadian outfit’s last outing in the British game.

After this game at the John Smith’s Stadium on March 11, 2020, the COVID-19 Pandemic struck and Toronto met their demise – hitting financial difficulty.

They would eventually withdraw from Super League, and the Challenge Cup, having been drawn against Newcastle Thunder in the next round.

Here, we look at where the Wolfpack 17 from this Challenge Cup win against the Giants are now…

Gareth O’Brien

O’Brien was responsible for ten of Toronto’s 18 points here, kicking five goals on the Wednesday night. The versatile back played 55 games for the Canadian side in total having joined them from Salford in March 2018.

Half a decade on from the Wolfpack’s demise, he’s now into his third season at Leigh – who he won the Challenge Cup with in 2023. Having represented nine different clubs, the 33-year-old has made over 300 senior career appearances.

Liam Kay

Three-time Ireland international Kay, now 33, was actually the first-ever signing to play for Toronto in their inaugural season in the British game back in 2017. Having helped them through the leagues, his stint in North America ended with 66 tries in 70 appearances.

The veteran hung up his boots after helping Wakefield to promotion at the end of the 2024 campaign – bringing an end to his career having scored 177 tries in 268 appearances.

Chase Stanley

Two-time Kiwi international Stanley, the nephew of former Premier League star Tim Cahill, had played over 100 games in the NRL prior to joining Toronto in March 2018.

This proved to be the 35-year-old’s only appearance for the Canadian side in 2020 due to visa issues, and the last of his 37 appearances in their colours. Despite our best efforts, we couldn’t find any information on what he’s up to now, so please do pass it on if you know and we’ll update!

Ricky Leutele

Toronto snapped up Leutele in 2019 following his exit from NRL outfit Cronulla Sharks, and he scored 20 tries in 35 appearances before the club’s financial demise – including their two four-pointers in this game. Capped seven times by Samoa, he also represented the Combined Nations All Stars against England in 2021.

Now 34, Leutele played for both Melbourne Storm and Huddersfield before joining Leigh in 2023, where he hung up his boots in terms of the professional game at the end of last year. Having made over 250 career appearances, the centre’s now back Down Under in the with Queensland Cup outfit Souths Logan Magpies.

Hakim Miloudi

Dual-code utility back Miloudi, who has represented both France and Algeria on the international stage, has played over 100 matches in the British game as well as close to that tally in the French Elite Championship. Born and raised in France, the 31-year-old featured 17 times for Toronto between 2019 and 2020.

Miloudi’s time in Super League ended in 2024 when he spent the year at London Broncos, and he is now back across the Channel with French Elite outfit Pia Donkeys.

Joe Mellor

Mellor turned 34 in November, and is still plying his trade in Super League with Salford having joined the Red Devils ahead of the 2024 campaign.

Having donned a shirt for six different clubs now, the veteran utility is fast approaching the milestone of 300 senior career appearances. 23 of his 297 games to date came in a Toronto shirt between 2019 and 2020.

Josh McCrone

Temora-born playmaker McCrone, who will turn 38 next month, had made close to 200 appearances Down Under before he joined Toronto in 2019 having donned a shirt for both Canberra Raiders and St George Illawarra Dragons in the NRL.

Playing 65 games for the Wolfpack, this proved to be the last game of his professional career. Returning home, he led local side Temora Dragons to a first minor premiership in almost two decades as captain-coach, and is now a fully qualified electrician.

Adam Sidlow

Bruising forward Sidlow joined Toronto in their inaugural season in 2017 having been at Bradford when the Bulls went into liquidation. The 37-year-old played 80 games for the Canadian outfit in total and scored 16 tries in the process before moving on to Leigh.

Now in League 1 with Swinton, the Lions are the eighth different club he’s donned a shirt for – with just shy of 370 senior appearances on Sidlow’s CV at the time of writing.

Andy Ackers

Golborne native Ackers joined Toronto in 2018 having departed London for family reasons. Now a two-time England international, the hooker played 66 games for the Wolfpack before the club’s demise.

Having turned 31 on Christmas Day, he’s been with Leeds since the start of the 2024 campaign having joined the Rhinos from Salford, and is closing in on the milestone of 300 senior career appearances.

Gadwin Springer

Born in the capital city of French Guiana, Cayenne, seven-time France international Springer linked up with Toronto in 2019 and made 23 appearances in the Canadian outfit’s colours.

The 31-year-old only briefly returned to the top-flight with Toulouse Olympique in 2022, spending the remainder of his time in the game since his Toronto exit in the Championship. He’s now into a third season at Featherstone Rovers and could well hit the milestone of 200 senior career appearances before 2025 is out.

Tom Olbison

33-year-old Olbison is another who was with Toronto between 2019 and 2020, scoring four tries in 36 games as he took his career appearance tally above 230.

The back-rower had been at both Bradford and Widnes Vikings before the Canadian outfit, seeing his time with all three of those clubs end prematurely due to financial issues. After his Wolfpack exit, the veteran hung up his boots and became a train driver!

Bodene Thompson

New Zealand Māori representative Thompson – who had played almost 200 NRL games before his move into the British game with Leigh back in 2018 – also joined Toronto in 2019.

Donning a shirt for both Leeds and Bradford after his departure from the Wolfpack, the Kiwi native – now 36 – eventually returned home and is an ambassador for the NRL now. He also works as a full-time safety advisor in the building industry.

Andrew Dixon

35-year-old Dixon played 73 games in a Wolfpack shirt between 2017 and 2020, scoring 28 tries. He didn’t make more appearances or score more tries for any of the other six clubs he represented during a 15-year career.

The Mancunian hung up his boots at the end of the 2024 campaign with 248 senior career games on his CV after two seasons at Salford. He is still in the game though having joined newly-promoted Championship outfit Oldham as their Head of Performance.

Anthony Mullally (Interchange)

Widnes native Mullally, who earned seven caps for Ireland through his heritage, joined Toronto in 2019 following his exit from Leeds, scoring four tries in 31 appearances for the Wolfpack. Now 33, the prop rounded off his career with stints at French outfit Carcassonne and League 1 side Cornwall.

Last playing a game in 2022, he was Cornwall’s 18th man for a Challenge Cup tie against York Acorn last year. Mullally is now in the wellness industry, specialising in breathwork for high performance. He was actually the only interchange used by Toronto in this game.

Darcy Lussick (Interchange)

Fellow prop Lussick – now 35 – arrived at Toronto in April 2018, joining the Canadian side from NRL outfit Manly Sea Eagles having played over 100 games at first-grade level Down Under.

Playing 42 games for the Wolfpack and even entering the world of boxing for a short period of time late in 2019, he would go on to briefly don a shirt in the British game for both Salford and Featherstone. The powerhouse is now back in Australia working in the field of security – acting as a bodyguard for numerous affluent families!

Blake Wallace (Interchange)

Wallace was 24 by the time he made his debut for Toronto in February 2017, but that was his professional bow having never played at first-grade level Down Under. Over the next three years, the Wollongong native would score 50 tries in 74 appearances for the Wolfpack.

The playmaker, now 32, joined Leigh ahead of the 2021 campaign but had to retire on medical grounds having suffered a pretty nasty concussion in just his third game for the club. He took charge of local side Dapto Canaries the following year back home. Let us know if you know what Blake’s up to now!

Tony Gigot (Interchange)

Rounding off the 17 is the third and final unused Toronto interchange from this game in the shape of French icon Gigot, capped 19 times on the international stage. He only joined the Wolfpack ahead of 2020, and took to the field just three times in the Canadian club’s colours before their demise.

The Catalans legend eventually had stints with both Wakefield and Toulouse before making the move into the French Elite Championship with Albi in 2023. Having turned 34 in December, he remains with Albi today.

Head coach: Brian McDermott

Veteran coach McDermott, who will turn 55 later this week, took charge of the Wolfpack ahead of the 2019 season. Leading them to promotion from the Championship at the first time of asking, he remained at the helm right up until the Canadian side’s demise.

Having gone on to spend time as a coaching consultant at Oldham and at Featherstone Rovers as head coach, McDermott made the move Down Under in 2023 – joining Newcastle Knights as an assistant. He remains with the Knights today.

Huddersfield Giants’ team from Challenge Cup clash with Toronto

Starting 13: Darnell McIntosh, Jermaine McGillvary, Jake Wardle, Jordan Turner, Sam Wood, Olly Russell, Aidan Sezer, James Gavet, Tom Holmes, Suaia Matagi, Kenny Edwards, Aaron Murphy, Paul Clough

Bench: Adam O’Brien, Michael Lawrence, Sam Hewitt, Oliver Wilson

Head coach: Simon Woolford

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