Almost 21 years have passed since Richard Branson stood on the plush turf of his London home and declared his grand vision for rugby league in the capital. “My plan is to convert a lot more Londoners into rugby league fans,” Branson said as he completed his takeover of the Broncos.
For a while his dream looked wholly realistic. In the late 1990s London finished second in Super League and reached the Challenge Cup final but by 2001 Branson was gone and a slow decline followed. That culminated in the Broncos’ relegation from Super League in 2014, the sport losing its only top-flight presence in the capital.
Expansion is high on rugby league’s agenda lately, though. England will play New Zealand in Denver in June – despite resistance from Australian clubs – while the sport’s venture into North America continues with Toronto’s push for a Super League place in 2019. A New York side also remain keen to enter the Rugby Football League ranks next year.
Despite the significant financial input the Wolfpack have made, they find themselves chasing rugby league’s original expansionist hipsters in London. Almost two months into the season London are the only unbeaten side in the top two tiers. They are the favourites for promotion to Super League next season – but how they are doing it makes this story all the more encouraging for the game’s future in the south.
On Sunday, under the guidance of their new coach, Danny Ward, London made it seven wins in succession in all competitions with a 64-18 victory against Swinton. It is their best start to a season in their 38-year history and a far cry from what some critics expected after the departure of their highly rated former coach, Andrew Henderson.
“We were confident appointing Danny was the right decision at the time and the results on the field are suggesting we were right,” a Broncos spokesman said. “Danny has been at the club for many years and knows London inside out. It was a natural progression for him to become coach.”
The criticism of Branson’s Broncos was that, despite short-term success, the lack of London-produced players would always hold the club back. Commendably, since relegation and relocation to Ealing, London have made youth development an underpinning part of their strategy.
More than half the side which defeated Swinton have come through the club’s Academy – including the latest jewel in their crown, Lewis Bienek, who will move to the Super League side Hull FC next year. These days it is not uncommon to look outside the M62 corridor for promising rugby league stars.
“The club is in the strongest position it’s been for years with the framework and structures that are now in place,” Ward, the club’s former Academy coach, said. “People who know about the game and come up against our Academy have no doubt about the strength of the game down here nowadays.”
Moving to Ealing and back to west London, following an earlier spell at Griffin Park in the mid-2000s, is also key to the rejuvenation of the Broncos. They have played at five venues this century alone but Trailfinders Sports Club, a facility they share with an equally ambitious rugby union side, now feels like a long-term base.
“Ealing has always been known as a community-oriented borough and that’s what the Broncos are all about,” the spokesman said. “We’ve an award-winning community programme which works with 23 schools in the Ealing borough. Season ticket sales have gone up a third on last year; because we’re in a stable place, people want to have a look at London again.”
London are renegotiating with the Trailfinders about staying in Ealing in 2019, too. Crowds remain modest – the Broncos average around a thousand spectators per game – but the numbers are steadily increasing in the years since relegation.
But this London, with community programmes and capital-born players at the heart of the club’s ethos, is surely more attractive to floating voters than it ever has been. It is a slow process but perceptions of London are changing. Branson always wanted more Londoners watching rugby league, and the new-look Broncos are doing all the right things to make that a reality.
