Rugby League looking for London ‘heroes and legacies’ as World Cup begins

Big issue: Kai Pearce-Paul adds a London flavour to England’s squad but Martin Offiah says the capital needs major investment to support sides such as the Broncos, who are struggling to make an impact

(Picture: Getty Images for Rugby League Wo)

Try as it might, rugby league has never entirely cracked London.

In its Super League pomp, the London Broncos finished runners-up in 1997 and were runners-up in the Challenge Cup two years later.

From then, it was a gradual slide down the top flight to the Championship, bar a one-season return in 2019. Last season ended with the Broncos languishing towards the bottom of rugby league’s second tier, with another capital side, London Skolars, battling a division below.

London has produced one of the England’s finest ever players in Martin Offiah, hailing from Hackney and switching union for the riches of league and an illustrious career which eventually took him to the Broncos.

As the Rugby League World Cup gets under way this weekend, there is a London flavour to England’s 24-man squad with the inclusion of Kai Pearce-Paul, who came through the ranks at the Broncos before switching to Wigan Warriors.

Former England star Jamie Peacock predicted the 6ft 5in 21-year-old, “could be a World Cup bolter and could do something special if given a shot”.

The sport would dearly love to get its claws into the untapped potential of London, both in terms of possible playing numbers and also the willingness of its inhabitants to dip into their pockets for sporting events. As Jon Dutton, CEO of the Rugby League World Cup, put it: “London remains the top postcode buying group,” and there have been all manner of pushes to tap into that.

This year’s Challenge Cup Final took place at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in front of 50,000-plus fans, while one of the World Cup semi-finals will be played in north London, at the Emirates. In addition, there is a tournament wheelchair rugby league double-header at the Copper Box. And the hope is that a successful campaign for England will have a knock-on effect in London. As for how rugby league cracks the city, Offiah said: “That’s the $64,000 question. It’s been tough. Often when London have been strong and produced players, they’ve been siphoned off by other clubs.

“It’s going to take a big investor to come into the sport and into London. It’s going to take something drastic and building it from the ground up.

“But we don’t just need the funds, we need the heroes, the legacies. It’s about telling people’s stories and buying into them. You’ve got to dare to dream. I did. I came from a working-class area in Hackney and wasn’t even the best rugby player in my family! Others have to come along and have that belief.”

England’s route to the final

• October 15 v Samoa (2.30pm, St James’ Park)
• October 22 v France (5pm, University of Bolton Stadium)
• October 29 v Greece (2.30pm, Bramall Lane)

Assuming England top Pool A, which they should…

• November 5, quarter-final (2.30pm, DW Stadium)
• November 12, semi-final (2.30pm, Emirates Stadium)
• November 19, Final (4pm, Old Trafford)

While a Super League team seems a prerequisite for a London foothold at the elite level of the sport, Offiah is buoyed by what he sees at grassroots level, having spent some time recently with another side, the Brixton Bulls.

“Every elite sportsman or woman has a grassroots story — where they came from and what they had to battle against,” he said.

In excess of £9million is being invested into rugby league across the country by the National Lottery from this year until 2027, including in London to support sides such as the Bulls.

There are 14 rugby league clubs across Greater London, with a total of 35 including the south east.

Danny Ward recently switched codes from league to union. Now with Rosslyn Park, he coached the Broncos from 2018 until last year, Pearce-Paul coming through the club’s academy at that time.

“All credit to the Broncos academy, because England wouldn’t have him now if it wasn’t for that,” he said. “That put him in the shop window. Even when the Broncos were in the Super League, it was hard to hold on to players, and you can only keep the talent down here if you’re top four. But there’s so much more untapped potential in London.”

There are other issues, too. Ward argues the Broncos’ various relocations have not helped their fanbase, plus he points to a drop in the number of development officers in London over the past decade. He also believes the World Cup has missed a trick in not having more games in London.

He said: “I still believe in the potential of the game down here. Rugby league needs a London side in the Super League — but it needs bodies on the ground and it needs investment.”