FORMER England star Jon Wilkin is unconcerned by the favourites tag as his glamorous Toronto Wolfpack team prepare to kick off the new Championship season against upstarts York City Knights.

The 35-year-old back-rower – twice a Super League champion and four-time Challenge Cup winner with St Helens – joined the Canadian big-timers this winter, and, having represented the club at the season launch at the De Grey Rooms in York, he will be back in the Minster city next Sunday (February 3) to make his debut in front of Sky Sports cameras at Bootham Crescent.

The expensively assembled Wolfpack – shocked by London Broncos in last season’s Million Pound Game - will start as heavy favourites but, when asked if those odds brought additional pressure or a confidence boost, Wilkin said: “We (Toronto) were favourites last year and that didn’t do us any favours at the back end.

“Bookies like to have favourites and underdogs. We will take whatever tag is given to us. It doesn’t matter really – sport is not sentimental like that.

“We’ve got a lot of new players and new combinations. At this time of year, anything can happen. Nobody is settled.”

On the key to victory, he added: “Hard work trumps talent in rugby league. Talent doesn’t win you games. Hard work wins you games. You have to work harder than everyone else – forget talent.

“If you work harder then maybe the talent can show through, but hard work is the key.”

A veteran of more than 400 matches with St Helens, winning every top-flight honour including last season's League Leaders Shield, Wilkin is now looking to add the Championship crown to his list of achievements having taken little persuasion to up sticks and go over the Atlantic.

He previously spent one season in the second tier with hometown club Hull KR back in 2002 before moving to Merseyside – and he believes standards have shot up since then.

“I’ve got a keen interest in all levels of the game,” he said when asked if he knew much about this division. “I started in the Championship with Hull KR. I’ve played at York before. Often in life things end where they started and this is the case here, going back to all the grounds I used to play at.

“The standards have improved no end. When I first played it was bottles of Bud and cigs in the showers. Things have moved on immensely since then.

“There’s been a massive influence from the top down, with professionalism really driving standards.

“When I came to Toronto I was blown away by the physical preparation of the guys. There’s no difference in the physical side of it (between Super League and the Championship).

“The big challenge is to be as skilful and consistently skilful as the Super League clubs.”

The Knights pulled off a huge shock the last time Toronto came to Bootham Crescent, ending the Wolfpack’s 100 per cent League One record in 2017 with a 26-16 victory that July, in a game dubbed the “Transatlantic Tussle”.

The Canadians were otherwise unstoppable as they won the title that year, and they have been the biggest force in the Championship since – topping the table last season and reacting to their play-off disappointment by adding several big-name signings plus four-time Super League-winning coach Brian McDermott.

But Wilkin admits not knowing his new opponents as well as he might like as the teams prepare for “Transatlantic Tussle II”.

“I know Ben Cockayne and a few of the lads,” he said of the promoted York side that succeeded Toronto as League One champions.

“In terms of details, in Super League I know everything about the players and what they’re likely to do on the pitch. For these games I know of them (the players) but I don’t know the details and that will be a challenge for me – the detail and how they operate and work.”

He added: “I’m excited to get going. Training is okay but we’re here to play games. Let’s see how we go.”