MATCH REPORT: London Broncos vs Bradford Bulls
Jake Watson • 7 September 2025
LONDON BRONCOS V BRADFORD BULLS (by David Ballheimer)
London Broncos (12) 24, Bradford Bulls (10) 34
London Broncos ended their 2025 home season with a defeat against Bradford Bulls, blown away by 40 minutes of power, strength and not a little skill. The Bulls, easily the physically biggest team the Broncos have faced this season, were completely outplayed for the first 35 minutes, when London might reasonably have hoped for a three- or four-try lead.
In the eighth minute, the Bulls made a handling error inside their 10 and their desperate defence went too far as they were penalised for a ball-strip two metres from their line. This time, the Broncos made Bradford pay, Luke Polselli taking a short Connor O’Beirne pass and running through a large hole in the defence. Jack Smith, as he would do after every try, added the extras.
Polselli figured frequently in attack, unfortunately knocking on five metres away from a second score, but then delivering a superb grubber kick that he almost reached, but Jayden Okunbor touched down moments before the London No.6. It led to a goal-line dropout which the Bulls were able to defend.
Quite how much Bradford were struggling was shown by head coach Brian Noble, who worked as a mentor with the Broncos player-head coach Andrew Henderson at The Hive in 2015, came down to pitch-side to deliver tactical and technical advice first-hand. In the 26th minute, London again applied pressure on the Bulls line and, from dummy half, Brandon Webster-Mansfield burrowed under the markers for London’s second score.
A third Broncos score before half-time might have put the game beyond Bradford’s reach. Instead, the Bulls made a key substitution, sending on the veteran Chris Hill. The prop, a winner of 41 international caps for England and Great Britain and almost 400 games in Super League, made it a personal crusade to offload every time he carried the ball.
The game’s turning point came with a 35th-minute penalty to Bradford just inside London’s half. A kick inside the 20 gave the Bulls all the territory they required, especially when they got a repeat set of tackles. After a couple of carry-ups, the ball was sent to the left where Guy Armitage, given his chance in rugby league by the Broncos, forced his way over.
After Luke Hooley’s conversion, the Broncos restart was a metre too long, giving the Bulls another penalty, this time on half-way. The touch-finder went out inside the London 10 and Bradford needed no second bidding to score again, this time it was Joe Keyes, a player given his chance in rugby league by the London Broncos, to scoot over. Hooley missed the conversion, his only failure of the afternoon. Leading up to the try Sadiq Adebiyi was injured and he missed the second half (adding to London’s woes, Ben Hursey-Hord left the game with a concussion early in the second period).
There was still time for another Bradford score, especially when they won another penalty just as the half-time hooter sounded. This time, however, a magnificent leaping reach by Alex Walker touched the ball. Instead of Bradford having one play to score again, the half was over because the restart would have been with a play-the-ball from a touch-finder instead of a tap from a penalty.
The second half saw Bradford take full control. George Taufua almost caught a Keyes chip, but couldn’t hold onto the ball, then Keyes drilled a 40–20 that went out inside the 10. Keyes himself finished off the possession with a mazy run through a broken defensive line. Three minutes later, the giant Waqa Blake crashed over from five metres out. From leading 12–0 after 35 minutes, the Broncos were now 22–12 behind after 52 minutes.
London’s first possession in the Bradford red zone ended with a Chris Hill interception – this was in the 58th minute. Eight minutes later, a London kick found touch, but Webster-Mansfield said something inappropriate to the referee and was invited to spend 10 minutes cooling his heels. Within 30 seconds, Armitage had run through the gap left by the absent centre to score his second try of the afternoon.
The 12 men hit back almost immediately. Bradford knocked on at the restart and the Broncos used the short field to their advantage, Liam Tindall going over in the left corner. Hopes of a miracle comeback were soon dashed as another Armitage break saw him have three players in support and Hooley took the ball behind the posts. After the conversion, Webster-Mansfield returned to the field.
There was still time for on more London try, again in the left corner, scored by Tindall, and once more magnificently improved by Smith.
London Broncos: 1 Alex Walker, 33 Jack Smith, 3 Ethan Natoli, 4 Brandon Webster-Mansfield, 5 Liam Tindall, 6 Luke Polselli, 7 Connor O’Beirne, 10 Lewis Bienik, 9 Curtis Davies, 14 Kobe Rugless, 11 Will Lovell, 12 Sadiq Adebiyi, 13 Marcus Stock. Replacements: 17 Jenson Monk, 18 Ben Hursey-Hord, 30 Ted Davidson, 34 Tommy Porter. 18th man: 22 Matt Ross.
Tries: Polselli 9, Webster-Mansfield 26, Tindall 70, 77
Goals: Smith 4/4
Sin bin: Webster-Mansfield, 66, dissent
Bradford Bulls: 26 Luke Hooley, 37 Jayden Okunbor, 3 Waqa Blake, 5 Guy Armitage, 23 Jorge Taufua, 1 Tom Holmes, 7 Joe Keyes, 8 Michael Lawrence, 9 Jordan Lilley, 15 Logan Bayliss, 11 Zac Fulton, 25 Bayley Liu, 20 Ronan Michael. Replacements: 10 Ebon Scurr, 14 Mitch Souter, 34 Chris Hill, 35 Zane Musgrove. 18th man Sam Hallas:
Tries: Armitage 36, 67, Keyes 39, 48, Blake 51, Hooley 74
Goals: Hooley 5/6
Sin bin: None
Referee: Marcus Griffiths
HT: 12–10
Penalty awarded count: 5–7
POST-MATCH: Mike Eccles following final home game of the season Watch the post-match interview from Mike Eccles following the final game of the 2025 season at The Cherry Red Records Stadium. In a wide ranging interview Mike discusses the result but also the plans moving forward for the club. #WeAreLondon
TEAM NEWS: London Broncos vs Bradford Bulls Here is your starting line up for this afternoon's final home game of the 2025 Championship season. Will Lovell and Sadiq Adebiyi return to the starting 13 after injury and Brandon Webster Mansfield starts after being an unused interchange last weekend. Ben Hursey-Hord also makes the 17 after being unavailable last week and Ted Davidson keeps a place in the matchday squad after impressing on full debut against Batley. #WeAreLondon
MATCHDAY GUIDE - EMILIA’S BIG DAY We are excited to be able to share the matchday guide with you for our match on Saturday to ensure you have the best possible experience backing the Broncos against Bradford Bulls. Important times to note: 14:00- Gates open. 14:00 – Hospitality opens 16:00- London Broncos vs Bradford KO CIRCA 16:40- London Broncos vs Bradford HT CIRCA 17:35- London Broncos vs Bradford FT 18:30 – Hospitality Last Orders 19:00 – Hospitality Closes 21:00 - Pub Closes
The Rugby Football League has confirmed an important update regarding promotion to the Betfred Women’s Super League. Following Warrington Wolves’ withdrawal from the competition for the remainder of the 2025 season, the scheduled Promotion Play-Off between the bottom-placed Super League side and the winner of the Northern Women’s Championship will no longer take place. Instead, the winner of the Northern Women’s Championship will be promoted directly into the Betfred Women’s Super League for the 2026 season, subject to meeting minimum competition standards. For London Broncos Women, this creates a historic opportunity. Should the team win the Northern Championship, we would secure promotion to the top flight for the first time in our history – and become the first ever Southern-based club to compete in the Betfred Women’s Super League. Head Coach Colin Baker (sponsored by The Craig Family) shared his thoughts: “As both a coach and a supporter of the women’s game, it’s always disappointing to see another club face difficulties. While this situation has created an opportunity for promotion, nothing really changes for us at London Broncos. Our focus remains the same – to earn the right to compete in the Betfred Women’s Super League. That’s the challenge we’ve set ourselves, and that’s what we’ll continue to work towards.” London Broncos begin their play-off campaign in the semi-final against Salford Red Devils on Sunday 14th September at Chiswick RFC. #WeAreLondon
It’s that time of the year when you get to vote for your 2025 Fan’s Player of the Year for the Men’s and Women’s teams!
MATCH PREVIEW: London Broncos vs Bradford Bulls It is the final home game of the season on Saturday as we welcome Bradford Bulls to The Cherry Red Records for Emilia's Big Day in partnership with DKMS. The Bulls are still fighting it out for the Championship title so will come into this game looking for another two points. For the Broncos it's an opportunity to sign off on a high after a challenging season which has continued to see improvements week on week. SQUAD INFO Mike Eccles has named his squad for the final home game of the season to face Bradford Bulls at The Cherry Red Records on Saturday. It is a very similar squad to last weekend however both Sadiq Adebiyi and Will Lovell return after missing the win over Batley through HIA protocols but both are cleared to play this weekend.
MATCH PREVIEW: Connor O'Beirne looks ahead to Emilia's Big Day Ahead of the final home game of the season Connor O'Beirne believes despite Bradford's superior league position they go into the game full of confidence. Cast your mind back to the opening back of the season it was a trip to Odsal for Mike Eccles' side - a team that had only played once together prior, a defeat to League One Goole Vikings. Broncos would show great potential and would lead Bradford at half-time. Ultimately it was Bradford who took the points but there were a number of positives - including the debut of Connor O'Beirne who instantly showed his ability to step up to The Championship. Watch the full interview with Connor as he discusses his first season in England and the excitement ahead of Saturday's game.
Emilia’s Big Day - WHAT’S GOING ON? We are set for a busy and exciting day on Saturday as we welcome Bradford Bulls to The Cherry Red Records for the final home game of the 2025 season. The game will be celebrated as Emilia’s Big Day and is in partnership with blood cancer charity DKMS. Once you arrive into the ground from General Admission you enter into the Fanzone where DKMS stands will be with information and swabbing opportunities. Key Timings; 2pm – Gates Open for general attendance and hospitality 2-3pm - Happy hour in Phoenix Pub 2-4pm - Fanzone activities 3:55pm – Emilia to walk the ball out with players with the Brass Band 4pm: Kick Off 4:40pm – Junior Awards by Foundation in front of East Stand
SQUAD ANNOUNCEMENT: London Broncos vs Bradford Bulls Mike Eccles has named his squad for the final home game of the season to face Bradford Bulls at The Cherry Red Records on Saturday. It is a very similar squad to last weekend however both Sadiq Adebiyi and Will Lovell return after missing the win over Batley through HIA protocols but both are cleared to play this weekend. #WeAreLondon
Face Salford in a Home Semi-Final on 14 Sep for a push to Super League!
