MATCH REPORT: Doncaster RLFC 30-12 London Broncos
Jake Watson • 25 May 2025
MATCH REPORT: Doncaster RLFC 30-12 London Broncos
It was another defeat for London Broncos on the road as in-form Doncaster put on an impressive second-half performance to take points.
Prior to the match, Doncaster hadn’t beaten the Broncos in 31 years. However, when this game kicked off there was no doubt the Dons would be favourites to end that long run. Richard Horne’s side came into this game off the back of a standout win over high flying Halifax whilst Mike Eccles team were looking to end a run of five consecutive defeats.
The opening exchanges were physical and both sides made errors but neither could carve open any chances of note. The Broncos had in fairness the slightly better of the exchanges but the kicking was inaccurate and not building the pressure that was needed.
In Edene Gebbie, Doncaster had one of the in-form players in the competition, and was always the likely man to break the deadlock. That proved to be the case in the 22nd minute when the ball was swept out to the Doncaster left-hand side and when Gebbie simply stepped back inside it was enough to fool the Broncos defence who were unable to change their direction quickly enough. The PNG man had plenty of space to run through and touch down pretty close to the posts to leave a relatively simple conversion. DONS 6-0 BRONCOS.
Despite going behind it spurred the Broncos into action and instantly found themselves with good-ball sets. In the 27th minute they got on the scoresheet as the ball was moved swiftly to the left-hand side and Binks with a delicate flat pass to Aarron Small who had enough momentum to carry himself over. It wasn’t a straightforward conversion but Hellec just snuck the kick over despite the winds best efforts to pull it short. DONS 6-6 BRONCOS.
For the rest of the first-half it was the Broncos who kept pressurizing the Dons defence. Tindall and Polselli were looking lively and were running hard which was the launchpad for lots of the better attack. Following a Broncos penalty where Binks kicked deep into the Dons 20 it was Lovell who nearly scored again but he was stopped a couple of metres short. The resulting play saw Binks go for the delicate grubber but it was scuffed and the opportunity was lost. However, the pressure was seeing the home side make mistakes and a high tackle in the 39th minute resulted in another Broncos penalty and understandably opted to kick from 25 metres out. Hellec confidently struck the ball and on the half-time hooter it was a 6-8 lead.
The second-half of games have proven the sticking point for the Broncos this season with a number of games slipping away from minutes 40-80. The half got off to a pretty bad start as the kick-off was knocked on by the Broncos and despite defending the resulting set, during the opening minute Liam Tindall picked up an injury and hobbled off and wasn’t able to return. Chris Ball would play the rest of the game in the unfamiliar position on the wing.
Despite the adversity of the opening minutes it was the Broncos who had the best chance to get the first points of the half. The ball made its way out to Hellec who was too far out to take it the distance but a smart kick saw both Barley and Polselli in hot pursuit but the Dons were able to knock the ball dead. From the goalline dropout Broncos launched another attack but a poor decision from Walker to run it instead of moving the ball through the hands when it looked like they had a man over saw the chance go begging.
The middles had so far played almost all the minutes with only Ross rotating with Worthington before the 50th minute. However, Hursey-Hord was now introduced to give Adebiyi a much needed breather.
Broncos had been looking the most likely to score but in Gebbie and Watson Boas, Doncaster having some x-factor and with space will punish you. A break straight up the middle produced a two on one scenario and Boas was quick enough to race away and score under the sticks. DONS 12-8 BRONCOS.
Just five minutes later the home side would extend the lead with an almost carbon copy try with the break coming through the middle and the offload creating huge space in the Broncos defence. Polselli again outnumbered and this time Smeaton went under the sticks to score. DONS 18-6 BRONCOS.
It was beginning to have that sinking feeling again and with the win now looking unlikely the Broncos had to show some fight with just over 15 minutes of the game remaining. Binks and Walker kicked a lot better in the second half building some all important pressure but in truth Broncos carved out few meaningful chances. Connor Barley, who had put in a strong performance on debut, pushed for a try in the 68th minute but was tackled by a pair of Dons defenders a couple of metres short.
Monk was introduced for Davies in the 70th minute but frustratingly the home side's lead was almost immediately extended as Boas would score again and Robinson’s faultless conversions brought the score to 24-8 and the points pretty much safe. Just to be extra sure Doncaster went for the jugular and a grubber to Gebbie saw a downbeat Broncos defence breached once more. 30-8.
Despite the result already determined, Broncos carried on right until the 80th minute and Monk would get his second try of the season with almost the final play of the game. The Dons slow to react to a quick play the ball, Monk spotted a gap and made sure the Broncos would make it to double digits for the afternoon. Final score Dons 30-12 Broncos.
BRONCOS; Polselli, Hellec, Small, Barley, Tindall, Walker, Binks, Worthington, Davies, Adebiyi, Lovell, Natoli, Stock. INTERCHANGES; Monk, Hursey-Hord, Ross & Ball
GAMEWEEK: Batley Bulldogs vs London Broncos It's the penultimate away league game of the season on Saturday as we make the trip to Batley Bulldogs. It's 11th vs 10th at the Fox's Biscuits Stadium (3pm KO) with both sides now guaranteed to be in bottom four irrespective of the results in the final three games. Batley come into this game off the back of a resounding win away at Hunslet and off the back off announcing James Ford will be the new head coach for the 2026 season. Tickets for this game can be bought from the link below! Keep scrolling for tickets for the final home league game of the season on September 6th.
Open trial for U17-U19s on 14 Sep to join the London Broncos Women Talent Pathway
MATCH REPORT: LONDON BRONCOS V OLDHAM RLFC (by David Ballheimer) London Broncos (12) 18, Oldham RLFC (8) 20 London Broncos suffered their fourth two-point home defeat of the season despite a truly magnificent defensive performance, especially in the second half. It did not help that London made three handling errors inside their own 10-metre zone, none of which were punished. It was London who enjoyed the bulk of the early territorial battle but when Huw Worthington was ruled held up in goal after seven minutes it was the first time either team had gone remotely close to scoring. Oldham appeared to be out of sorts; their recent influx of players meant they probably had not had much time on the training field to get to know each other’s style of play. They didn’t help their cause by committing two late-hit penalties in three minutes. The second one, a shot on Connor O’Beirne as he kicked, led to the opening score. In the 15th minute, Sadiq Adebiyi was able to burst through a couple of tacklers to ground the ball and Jack Smith turned four points into six. For all of the opening quarter, it was London who held the upper hand, but Oldham’s first attack showed menace although it ended tamely just inside the Broncos’ 20. This did signal a shift in the balance of play and the Roughyeds started to win the territorial battle.
HIGHLIGHTS: London Broncos vs Oldham RLFC You can now watch back highlights of the Round 23 Championship fixture between London Broncos and Oldham RLFC at the Cherry Red Records. Keep scrolling for tickets for the final home league game of the season on September 6th.
MATCH GALLERY: London Broncos vs Oldham RLFC Take a look through the best images from the Championship fixture at The Cherry Red Records between London Broncos and Oldham RLFC. #WeAreLondon
POST-MATCH REACTION: Mike Eccles following defeat to Oldham Hear the thoughts of Mike Eccles following the narrow defeat to Oldham RLFC at The Cherry Red Records Stadium. #WeAreLondon
TEAM NEWS: London Broncos vs Oldham RLFC Here is your starting line-up for this afternoon’s Championship fixture with Oldham RLFC at The Cherry Red Records. Liam Tindall, Luke Polselli and Alex Walker return to the starting 13 following injury and Lewis Bienek returns to the squad in a boost to Mike Eccles. Max Wood who has joined on dual-registration from Warrington Wolves is also in the squad. #WeAreLondon
MATCH PREVIEW: London Broncos vs Oldham RLFC It is the penultimate home league game of the season on Sunday as London Broncos welcome Sean Long's Oldham RLFC to The Cherry Red Records Stadium. The Roughyeds are flying high in the league and were made to work for their latest win on Sunday as they edged past Batley Bulldogs at The Fox's Biscuits Stadium. For the Broncos they look to return to winning ways after defeats to fellow high-flyers Toulouse and York. Speaking after the defeat to York, Mike Eccles says he is confident there will be a return to the side of some of the players who were injured. SQUAD INFO Mike Eccles has named his 21-man squad to face Oldham RFLC at The Cherry Red Records Stadium on Sunday, 24th (3pm KO). There is positive news as Alex Walker, Liam Tindall, Luke Polselli and Lewis Bienek return after missing last weekend. However, Will Lovell and Dan Okoro miss out after picking up head injuries in the defeat to York. Meanwhile, Warrington prop Max Wood joins up with the squad this weekend on dual-registration. Aaron Small has been ruled out for the remainder of the season with a torn bicep and Brandon Webster-Mansfield is back in training and is hopeful of a near return.
SQUAD ANNOUNCEMENT: London Broncos vs Oldham RLFC Mike Eccles has named his 21-man squad to face Oldham RFLC at The Cherry Red Records Stadium on Sunday, 24th (3pm KO). There is positive news as Alex Walker, Liam Tindall, Luke Polselli and Lewis Bienek return after missing last weekend. However, Will Lovell and Dan Okoro miss out after picking up head injuries in the defeat to York. Meanwhile, Warrington prop Max Wood joins up with the squad this weekend on dual-registration. Aaron Small has been ruled out for the remainder of the season with a torn bicep and Brandon Webster-Mansfield is back in training and is hopeful of a near return. #WeAreLondon
Max Wood joins Broncos squad London Broncos can confirm that Max Wood will join up with the squad for this weekend’s fixture from Warrington Wolves. The 21-year-old prop joined Warrington on a one-year deal after being released by Wigan at the end of the 2023 season. He began pre-season training for the 2024 campaign with Warrington’s first team and impressed coach Sam Burgess so much that he was offered a one-year deal with a one-year option in the club’s favour. In 2025 he has played 11 times for Warrington and also 6 times for fellow dual registration club Widnes Wolves. #WeAreLondon
