Carleton hoping World Cup has enticed fans

South Wales forward Phil Carleton hopes that having a World Cup game in Neath will bring new fans into the Gnoll next year.

The Scorpions are in the process of rebuilding for 2014 and the 29-year-old can’t wait to be a part of it, believing crowds will be larger despite a poor performance from the Dragons in the World Cup.

Carleton said, “We as a club have gone through a lot of changes over the closed season and I hope that having a World Cup in Wales will not only bring a fresh look to the team, but also the supporters too.

“I as a player would like to see us making more contact with the fans post game and help them understand the efforts and lengths we as a club go to – win, lose or draw.

“Rugby league is real honest game and I hope that this year everything the club does in the way we train, play and answer any questions will reflect that.

“We’ve no promises of super human feats, we’ll just try and compete every week to 100% of our ability and with that hopefully win back the respect and admiration of some of the fans we have lost over the years.”

Carleton attended Wales‘ final group match, and although the result was a disappointing loss to the Cook Islands, he enjoyed the day.

“I thought the atmosphere, considering the circumstances of the game, was really good,” he said. “The Cook Islanders seemed in good voice, as were the kids from the schools.

“Fans from the (North Wales) Crusaders turned out to support (Christiaan) Roets and (Rob) Massam and there was some good banter there.

“The game got exciting as Wales began to find a little shape and form which nearly put them back into a winning position. The crowd responded well to it and it got competitive, it was just a shame they couldn’t hold out for a win.

“However we got over 3,000 in the ground and you can’t argue with that. The club just need to follow it up now and get them back to support us next year.”