139-672: The London Broncos are a professional rugby league club based in Wimbledon , England . They play their home games at Plough Lane and compete in the Championship , the second tier of British rugby league . Whilst the club has never won a major trophy, they have finished second in the League Championship once and have been Challenge Cup runners-up once. They have also won the Championship Grand Final, to gain promotion to
278-605: A breakaway faction of England's Rugby Football Union (RFU). Both organisations played the game under the same rules at first, although the Northern Union began to modify rules almost immediately, thus creating a new simpler game that was intended to be a faster-paced form of rugby football. Similar breakaway factions split from RFU-affiliated unions in Australia and New Zealand in 1907 and 1908, renaming themselves "rugby football league s" and introducing Northern Union rules. In 1922,
417-565: A decree by the RFU banning the playing of rugby at grounds where entrance fees were charged led to twenty-two clubs (including Stockport, who negotiated by telephone) meeting at the George Hotel, Huddersfield , on 29 August 1895 and forming the "Northern Rugby Football Union". Within fifteen years of that first meeting in Huddersfield, more than 200 RFU clubs had left to join the rugby league. In 1897,
556-652: A first appearance in the Challenge Cup semi-finals, losing to Wigan . Head coach Tony Currie left the club at the end of the 1998 Super League season and was replaced by Dan Stains . In 1999, the club went one stage better in the Challenge Cup. Following a famous last-minute semi-final victory over Castleford , the Broncos reached the Challenge Cup Final at Wembley Stadium for the first time, but despite taking
695-528: A folded teak lining. The "wet" side of the central aisle houses a series of pools, including a 50m competition pool, and a diving pool with a dramatic reinforced concrete diving platform. The "dry" side has a smaller sports arena used for basketball, gymnastics and other sports. The listing from Historic England describes the building as "exceptional in the breadth of its vision, not only in the range of facilities carefully planned within it but also in being intended to serve serious performers from all nations (there
834-405: A four-yearly cycle in the 2010s; as of 2023 , the holders are Australia . A short-sided version of the sport, rugby league nines , using modified rugby league rules also exists, and is comparable to rugby sevens . Wheelchair rugby league is a mixed-gender sport using heavily modified rugby league rules for disabled and able-bodied players. Unlike wheelchair rugby which adopted its name after
973-531: A further notice of intention to appoint administrators at court, which shall be effective for 10 business days". The club's saviour David Hughes later decided to carry on putting millions into the club. Rugby league Rugby league football , commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby XIII in non- Anglophone Europe and South America, and referred to colloquially as football , footy , rugby , or league in its heartlands,
1112-407: A good start, winning six from the first ten games, but as was customary a second half of the season collapse saw the club won only five from the last seventeen games to finish in 9th again. In 2009, the club was playing very well in the early part of the season, which extended up until 12 June with ten wins from sixteen, but yet again the rest of the season proved miserable with one win from 12 seeing
1251-536: A home game at Priestfield Stadium, this time being heavily beaten 82–10 by Warrington in front of 3,041 fans. On 28 March, London had to play a home game at Esher RFC 's ground at Molesey Road due to a waterlogged pitch at the Stoop. For the next home game on 6 April, Harlequins RU didn't allow London to use the Stoop due to a Heineken Cup game, forcing them to play Bradford at Adams Park in High Wycombe. London Broncos had
1390-625: A mix of New Japan’s regular roster along with talent from Joshi (all female) partner promotion Stardom and British partner promotion Revolution Pro Wrestling (RevPro), who also assisted with production. RevPro hosted two events of their own, Uprising in December 2023 and High Stakes: Ospreay vs Oku in February 2024. Both shows featured talent from New Japan, with Uprising also featuring talent from Mexican promotion CMLL and High Stakes featuring All Elite Wrestling (AEW) star Orange Cassidy as
1529-437: A mix of the two sports' rules. Much more so than rugby union, rugby league shares significant similarities with North American gridiron codes. Although described as evolving from both rugby and association football , the basic structures of American and Canadian football are remarkably similar to rugby league through a process of parallel evolution: a try-and-goal based scoring system, a set number of plays before handover of
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#17330850048351668-629: A professional level. 45 national teams are ranked by the RLIF and a further 32 are officially recognized and unranked. The strongest rugby league nations are Australia , England , New Zealand , Samoa and Tonga . The Rugby League World Cup is the highest form of representative rugby league. Countries that have contested are Australia , Cook Islands , England , Fiji , France , Ireland , Italy , Jamaica , Lebanon , New Zealand , Papua New Guinea , Russia , Samoa , Scotland , South Africa , Tonga , US and Wales . The 2021 Rugby League World Cup, which
1807-453: A result play stops much less frequently in rugby league, with the ball typically in play for 50 out of the 80 minutes compared to around 35 minutes for professional rugby union. Other differences include that there are fewer players in rugby league (13 compared to 15) and different rules for tackling . Rugby union has more detailed rules than rugby league and has changed less since the 1895 schism. Since rugby union turned professional in
1946-687: A revived league of six European cities garnered three straight 4-6 records, before bowing out with a 3–7. The main stadium pitch is currently used by the London Olympians and is the home of the Great Britain Lions , the national American football team. The stadium played host to the 2011 Britbowl , the championship game of the British American Football League , which was won by the London Blitz . Crystal Palace race circuit
2085-457: A shock early lead in the game and performing bravely, they were soundly defeated 52–16 by red-hot favourites Leeds. The club returned to the Valley for the 2000 season, but sacked Stains after enduring a long losing streak. Tony Rea was appointed temporary joint head coach with Stains' assistant Les Kiss . Rea and Kiss managed to steer Broncos out of the slump. In 2000, the experienced John Monie
2224-465: A successful Challenge Cup campaign in 2013, reaching the semi-finals for the first time since their Wembley appearance in 1999. In round 4, London beat part-timers Featherstone Rovers 24–12 and in round 5, defeated Bradford 25–16. In the quarter-finals, London Broncos beat part-timers Sheffield Eagles 29–10 to book a place in the semi-finals. On 27 July, London Broncos' dream of reaching the Wembley final for
2363-641: A surprise entrant in the opening match, with AEW CEO Tony Khan also in attendance. High Stakes’ main event was the final match for Will Ospreay as a regular fixture on the British independent wrestling scene before joining AEW full time. High Stakes drew the Sports Centre's largest crowd for pro wrestling with over 3000 attendees. Crystal Palace Sports Arena was a proposed football stadium to be built in Crystal Palace Park , to replace Selhurst Park as
2502-415: A team's creative unit or 'playmakers'. During the interactions between a team's 'key' players (five-eighth, half-back, fullback, lock forward, and hooker), the five-eighth and half-back will usually be involved in most passing moves. These two positions are commonly called the "halves". The forwards' two responsibilities can be broken into "normal play" and "scrum play". For information on a forward's role in
2641-528: A thumping 0–60 home defeat to Leeds. It was not until the fifth home game in the season that the team won at the Twickenham Stoop against Catalans Dragons in round 9. Whilst the club started with a goal of 5,500 average home ground attendance by mid 2007. the actual attendance average was around the 3,500 level. A 38–18 loss against bottom of the table Catalan, who were in their first year in Super League,
2780-401: A value of 2 points when kicked from beyond the 40 metre line. Field position is crucial in rugby league, achieved by running with or kicking the ball. Passing in rugby league may only be in a backward or sideways direction. Teammates, therefore, have to remain on-side by not moving ahead of the player with the ball. The ball may be kicked ahead, but if teammates are in front of the kicker when
2919-542: Is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 m (74 yd) wide and 112–122 m (122–133 yd) long with H-shaped posts at both ends. It is one of the two major codes of rugby football , the other being rugby union . It originated in 1895 in Huddersfield , Yorkshire , England, as the result of a split from the Rugby Football Union (RFU) over
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#17330850048353058-423: Is a large sports centre and outdoor athletics stadium. It was opened in 1964 in Crystal Palace Park , close to the site of the former Crystal Palace Exhibition building which had been destroyed by fire in 1936, and is on the same site as the former FA Cup Final venue which was used here between 1895 and 1914. It was one of the five National Sports Centres , run on behalf of Sport England , but responsibility
3197-468: Is conducted under the direction of the Federation of International Touch (FIT). Though it shares similarities and history with rugby league , it is recognised as a sport in its own right due to its differences which have been developed over the sport's lifetime. Touch is a variation of rugby league with the tackling of opposing players replaced by a touch. As touches must be made with minimal force, touch
3336-485: Is open to the air, and has a larger West Stand and a smaller Jubilee Stand (from 1977). The indoor sports building was designed by the LCC Architects Department under project architect Norman Engleback between 1953–54 and is a Grade II* listed building . It has a particularly interesting interior: there is a central concourse with a complex and delicate exposed concrete frame supporting the roof, which has
3475-549: Is separate residential accommodation in the park) as well as local enthusiasts." A hexagonal tower and low-rise communal area next to the main building provided accommodation for 130 athletes. Since 2020 the 50m pool and diving pool have been closed for repairs, which will be funded by the Greater London Authority. The current 15,500 seater athletics stadium was built on the site of the football ground by M J Gleeson and opened in 1964. From 1999 to 2012 it hosted
3614-432: Is the dominant winter sport in the eastern Australian states of New South Wales and Queensland . The game is also among the predominant sports of Tonga and is played in other Pacific nations such as Samoa and Fiji . Researchers have found that rugby league has been able to help with improving development in the islands. In Australia, and indeed the rest of the region, the annual State of Origin series ranks among
3753-536: Is therefore considered a limited-contact sport. The original basic rules of touch were established in the 1960s by members of the South Sydney Junior Rugby League Club in Sydney, Australia . OzTag is a non-contact form of rugby league, and can be seen as a variation of British tag rugby. Cronulla Sharks and St George Dragons halfback Perry Haddock introduced the sport in Australia while coaching
3892-466: Is when current owner David Hughes initially became involved with the club. Former Brisbane Broncos coach Tony Currie was appointed to the role of head coach. The team performed far beyond initial expectations and eventually finished a highly creditable fourth, with Greg Barwick the top points scorer for the club. That season also brought the best London home attendances since the first season at Craven Cottage . Tony Rea retired from playing to take up
4031-413: Is worth. One of the main differences is the rules of possession. When the ball goes into touch , possession in rugby union is contested through a line-out , while in rugby league a scrum restarts play. The lesser focus on contesting possession means that play focuses more on powerful running, hard tackling, forward progression and the contest for field position (commonly compared to an "arm wrestle"); as
4170-418: The 1899 season . The club played first-class matches from 1900 to 1904. Some of the best players of the time played some matches for the club while continuing to play for their usual teams, among them CB Fry , Johnny Douglas and K S Ranjitsinhji . However, the games were little more than exhibition games – and money-making exercises for Dr Grace – and so it quickly lost its first-class status, and with that
4309-579: The 1953–54 Challenge Cup Final replay at Odsal Stadium , Bradford , England, setting a new record for attendance at a rugby football match of either code. Also in 1954, the Rugby League World Cup, the first for either code of rugby, was formed at the instigation of the French. In 1966, the International Board introduced a rule that a team in possession was allowed three play-the-balls and on
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4448-406: The 1999 NRL season . Figure shown is the total attendance which is officially counted for both games. ** The official attendance of the 1954 Challenge Cup Final replay was 102,569. Unofficial estimates put the attendance as high as 150,000, Bradford Police confirming 120,000. Crystal Palace National Sports Centre The National Sports Centre at Crystal Palace in south London, England
4587-451: The ARL and NZRL . Since rugby league was introduced to Australia in 1908, it has become the largest television sport and 3rd most attended sport in Australia. Neighbouring Papua New Guinea is one of two countries to have rugby league as its national sport (with Cook Islands ). Australia's elite club competition also features a team from Auckland , New Zealand's biggest city. Rugby league
4726-532: The BBC broadcast the first ever televised motor racing. With the outbreak of World War II, the park was taken over by the Ministry of Defence , and it would not be until 1953 that race meetings could take place again. The circuit had been reduced in length to 1.39 miles, bypassing the loop past the lake, and pressure from the local residents reduced motor sport in the park to five days a year. A variety of races took place at
4865-616: The COVID-19 pandemic . The Sports Centre’s indoor sports arena has played host to professional wrestling events beginning in May 2018, with American independent promotion Ring of Honor hosting the second show of their ‘Honor United’ UK Tour. In 2022, Japanese promotion New Japan Pro Wrestling hosted Royal Quest II , which took place over two nights on the 1st and 2nd October and returned in October 2024 to host Royal Quest IV . These shows featured
5004-416: The Challenge Cup , a club attendance record that still stands. The new Fulham RL team quickly proved to be very competitive and went on to win promotion at the end of their inaugural season . After that initial success, however, immediate relegation from the first division in 1981–82 was something of a reality check. Fulham played two "home" games against Swinton and Huddersfield at Widnes in 1983 as
5143-528: The Division Two Championship comfortably in 1982–83, a second immediate relegation in 1983–84, coupled with continuing financial losses, saw Clay, under pressure from the Fulham football club board, pull the plug at the end of their fourth season. However, with the backing of supporters Roy and Barbara Close and the appointment of a new coach, former player Roy Lester, Fulham RL still had a future. Most of
5282-581: The Grand Prix Legends historical motor racing simulation, for which it was recreated in detail. It was later converted to several other racing simulation programs. Adjacent to the Olympic swimming pool exists a small race circuit for radio-controlled cars. The site is the home of the London Radio Car Club (LRCC). The first British Motor Show (then known as the 'London Motor Show', which was one of
5421-613: The International Rugby League . Rugby league is the national sport of Papua New Guinea and the Cook Islands and is a popular sport in countries such as England , Australia , New Zealand , France , Tonga , Fiji , Samoa , Lebanon , Jamaica , and Malta . The first Rugby League World Cup was held in France in 1954, the first World Cup of either rugby code, and has been held sporadically ever since, settling into
5560-643: The London Grand Prix . The stadium can be expanded to 24,000 with temporary seating if required. Sand from the Beach Volleyball Courts at Horse Guards Parade during London 2012 was donated to Crystal Palace National Sports Centre in 2012. There are three courts outside the indoor building. The current athletics stadium is on the same land as a previous football ground, which hosted the FA Cup final from 1895 to 1914 as well as other sports. In 1905 ,
5699-670: The New South Wales Rugby Football League was founded at Bateman's Hotel in George Street. Unlike in England, where both codes maintained their own geographic areas of dominance, in Australia rugby league went on to displace rugby union entirely as the primary football code in New South Wales and Queensland , while Australian rules football dominated the rest of Australia. On 5 May 1954, 102,569 spectators watched
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5838-722: The Ottawa Aces were scheduled to join the English league pyramid, becoming the only Canadian team in the system after the Wolfpack were denied re-entry. The club subsequently relocated to Penryn, Cornwall , and are now known as Cornwall R.L.F.C. In 2021, the North American Rugby League announced an attempt to be North America's professional championship, with Canadian club Toronto Wolfpack joining several USA Rugby League clubs, New York Freedom and Cleveland Rugby League to form
5977-572: The Rugby League European Federation and Asia-Pacific Rugby League Confederation expanding the game to new areas such as Chile , Canada , Ghana , Philippines , Czech Republic , Germany , The Netherlands , Sweden , Norway , Spain , Sri Lanka , Hungary , Turkey , Thailand and Brazil to name a few. The two most prominent full-time professional leagues are the Australian National Rugby League and
6116-548: The line-out was abolished and in 1898 professionalism introduced. In 1906, the Northern Union changed its rules, reducing teams from 15 to 13 a side and replacing the ruck formed after tackles with the play-the-ball . By this point, rule changes meant the game organised by the RFL was distinct as a sport from its union cousin. A similar schism to that which occurred in England took place in Sydney , Australia. There, on 8 August 1907
6255-410: The 1901 Cup Final, when 114,815 amassed to watch Tottenham Hotspur and Sheffield United draw 2–2, (Spurs won the replay at Burnden Park ). The 1970–71 WFA Cup (Women's FA Cup) third-place match and final were held at the new stadium in 1971, the first final of the modern competition; it was won by Southampton Women . In January 2011, the owners of Crystal Palace F.C. announced plans to relocate
6394-520: The 1990s, when News Corporation paid for worldwide broadcasting rights. The media giant's "Super League" movement created changes for the traditional administrators of the game. In Europe, it resulted in a move from Rugby League being a winter sport to a summer one, as the new Super League competition tried to expand its market. In Australasia, the Super League war resulted in long and costly legal battles and changing loyalties, causing significant damage to
6533-518: The 1992 St George Jersey Flegg side. Together with Chris Parkes, the two took the sport to fields across Australia. Today, it is played by over 200,000 players in organised leagues across the country. League Tag replaces tackling with the removal of one of two tags carried on an opponent's hips, attached directly to specific League Tag shorts with Velcro patches, but otherwise retains almost all other rules of traditional rugby league (such as kicking). A number of additional rules are also added relating to
6672-528: The 2012–2013 season, the London Lions played the home games at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre until they moved to the brand new Copper Box in 2013. From 2018, the Arena once more became a BBL venue when it was announced as the home of the new London City Royals franchise, the second London based franchise in the league. The stadium hosted the 1989 National Championship Game for American Football, called
6811-451: The 2017 Kingstone Press League 1 in their inaugural season and earned promotion to the 2018 Rugby League Championship. In 2019 The Wolfpack won promotion to the Super League, lasting only a few months before having to withdraw due to the ongoing worldwide COVID-19 pandemic . New ownership is currently trying to revive the club with matches against amateur clubs in the US and Canada. Beginning in 2022,
6950-647: The British Super League (with teams from New Zealand and France respectively). Other professional and semi professional leagues include Australia's Queensland Cup (which includes a team from Papua New Guinea ) and NSW Cup , the British RFL Championship and RFL League 1 , the French Super XIII and Elite 2 . The Papua New Guinea National Rugby League operates as a semi-professional competition and enjoys nationwide media coverage, being
7089-774: The Budweiser Bowl, where the Manchester Spartans won the Great Britain National Championship by defeating the Birmingham Bulls by a score of 21 – 14. This National Championship Game was broadcast nationally on Channel 4. This was the height of the Great Britain – NFL relationship and partnership as the NFL supported the game, and the NFL commissioner and front office attended the game. The Cleveland Browns and
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#17330850048357228-658: The Chief Executive role at the club. After only one season at The Valley, the club were on their way back to south-west London to play at the Stoop Memorial Ground again for the 1997 season. The second season of Super League saw an even greater improvement in the team's performance, finishing a remarkable second to the eventual champions, Bradford Bulls . This represents London's best ever final league position to date. Richard Branson 's highly successful Virgin Group became
7367-565: The Divisional Premiership Final at Old Trafford ; although they lost 22–30 to Workington Town , the club had gone into the game with the knowledge that an exciting take-over bid had just been announced. In the spring of 1994, just prior to the Divisional Premiership Final, it was announced that the successful Australian NRL club Brisbane Broncos was buying the London Crusaders club, which would be renamed London Broncos from
7506-580: The Harlequins RL era drew to a close when the club played St Helens in their final game under that name on 10 September 2011. The club announced on 1 November 2011 that it would be returning to the London Broncos name from the 2012 season. In addition, the team unveiled a new logo as well as new colours of black, light blue and silver. On 4 February, London Broncos played their first competitive match against St. Helens since reverting to that name. The game
7645-756: The Manchester Spartans repeated as the Champions of Great Britain, winning their second National Championship in a row by defeating the Northampton Storm by a score of 21–19. The NFL also attended the 1990 Great Britain Championship Game at Crystal Palace, as did the players and cheerleaders for the New Orleans Saints and the Los Angeles Raiders as they were the two teams playing in the American Bowl
7784-525: The National Rugby League, this was reduced to ten prior to the 2008 season and further reduced to eight prior to the 2016 season. If a team has to interchange a player due to the blood bin rule or due to injury, and this was the result of misconduct from the opposing team, the compromised team does not have to use one of its allocated interchanges to take the player in question off the field. The backs are generally smaller, faster and more agile than
7923-605: The Northern Union also changed its name to the Rugby Football League and thus over time the sport itself became known as "rugby league" football. In 1895, a schism in Rugby football resulted in the formation of the Northern Rugby Football Union (NRFU). The success of working class northern teams led to some compensating players who otherwise would be on their job and earning income on Saturdays. This led to
8062-540: The Olympic Stadium. The now defunct football team AC London used the stadium for their home games in the club's 2015–16 season. Croydon F.C. announced a temporary switch of home ground to Crystal Palace in 2020. 21 teams competed in the twenty FA Cup Finals staged at Crystal Palace, with ten different winners. Four more teams won the FA Cup during this time, after replays at other grounds. Newcastle United appeared in
8201-421: The Philadelphia Eagles players and cheerleaders also attended, as they were the two teams who were playing the next day in the American Bowl at Wembley Stadium. The NFL's Tex Schramm presented Spartan player/head coach Terry Smith with the National Championship Trophy at Wembley Stadium the next day. The stadium also hosted the 1990 National Championship Game for American Football, called the Coca-Cola Bowl, where
8340-445: The RFL only 11 days before the start of the season, but were able to re-launch in September. Bev Risman was appointed coach at Fulham in 1987. The team was in the bottom half of the second division and continually struggled for success, and Risman left after a couple of seasons and Bill Goodwin returned. Phil Sullivan was coach for just two months between January and February 1989, thereafter Goodwin came in for his third spell and held
8479-411: The RFU reacting to enforce the amateur principle of the sport, preventing "broken time payments" to players who had taken time off work to play rugby. Northern teams typically had more working class players (coal miners, mill workers etc.) who could not afford to play without this compensation, in contrast to affluent southern teams who had other sources of income to sustain the amateur principle. In 1895,
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#17330850048358618-419: The RL club some shared office space. The sole integration programme appeared to be a combined fund raising lottery – which folded long before the Rugby League club permanently left the Twickenham Stoop – and two "double header" match days. These were in 2006, in which the Union side played first, followed by the League side, but the lengthy two hour gap between fixtures was a deterrent to the Union supporters and
8757-479: The Second Division the previous season, London Broncos were selected by the RFL to be part of the radical new Super League competition scheduled to begin in the summer of 1996, on the basis that the RFL felt it was commercially essential for the sport's national profile to have a team based in the nation's capital. The regular 1995–96 season, deliberately made brief to accommodate for Super League, ran from August 1995 to January 1996 and saw London included together with
8896-578: The Super League, on two occasions. Originally formed as Fulham Rugby League Club in 1980, they have also previously been known as London Crusaders and Harlequins Rugby League . London's home colours are black and red. Professional rugby league was briefly represented in London during the 1930s by London Highfield (1933), Acton and Willesden (1935–36) and Streatham and Mitcham (1935–36). All these were speculative clubs set up by local businessmen purely as money making exercises, and were ultimately driven out of business through poor finances. Thereafter,
9035-416: The Virgin Group to buy the London Broncos in August 2001, with the aim of buying a Super League place for a proposed merged club to be based in York under a new name, York Wasps. This attempt was thrown out when Richard Branson rebuffed the offer as 'ridiculous, and speculative at best'. In 2002, fervent club supporter David Hughes purchased the majority shareholding from Virgin in a major restructuring of
9174-585: The ability to attract the top players. The club folded in 1908. The 2,000 capacity indoor Arena at the National Sports Centre was also home to former British Basketball League team's Crystal Palace and London Towers . Crystal Palace eventually merged into the London Towers organisation in 1998, whilst after great success domestically and in European competition the Towers ran into severe financial difficulties and folded its professional team in 2006. During its most successful period, Towers alternated between Crystal Palace and Wembley Arena as its home venues. For
9313-447: The ball comes into contact with the ground. An attacking team gets a maximum of six tackles to progress up the field before possession is changed over. Once the tackle is completed, the ball-carrier must be allowed to get to his feet to ' play-the-ball '. Ball control is also important in rugby league, as a fumble of the ball on the ground forces a handover, unless the ball is fumbled backwards. The ball can also be turned over by going over
9452-421: The ball is kicked, they are deemed off-side. Tackling is a key component of rugby league play. Only the player holding the ball may be tackled. A tackle is complete, for example, when the player is held by one or more opposing players in such a manner that he can make no further progress and cannot part with the ball, or when the player is held by one or more opposing players and the ball or the hand or arm holding
9591-435: The circuit including sports cars , Formula Three , the London Trophy for Formula Two , and even non-championship Formula One races. The last International meeting was in May 1972, the final lap record going to Mike Hailwood at an average speed of 103.39 mph (166 km/h). The final meeting was held on 23 September 1972, but club events continued until 1974. Although the circuit no longer exists, it can be driven in
9730-462: The club back to their original home at the site of the National Sports Centre, redeveloping it into a 40,000-seater, purpose-built football stadium. Tottenham Hotspur F.C. also released plans to redevelop the NSC into a 25,000-seater stadium, maintaining it as an athletics stadium, as part of their plans to redevelop the Olympic Stadium after the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics . However, their plans were cancelled due to their failure to obtain
9869-508: The club slide from 5th position to 11th. Home supporters were particularly displeased with the 0–48 home loss to Castleford and the 0–36 half time score v Bradford. By round 12 in 2010, the club had won only one game from the first eleven and were bottom of the table, meaning that McDermott had seen the team win just twice in twenty three games, and at half-time away at Wigan the team were losing 24–6 before pulling off their finest comeback as Harlequins RL to win 38–26. That result seemed to spur
10008-519: The club were then acquired by new owners Britannic Shipping ; Strudwick stepped down as manager to give the club's new owners a clean slate. Despite the club's financial problems, the team proved very competitive on the pitch under coach Tony Gordon and narrowly missed out on automatic promotion back to the First Division by a single point. The climax of the Crusaders' era was a May 1994 appearance in
10147-546: The club's first signing was Roy Lester, on a free transfer from Warrington. Within nine weeks, Genders and Bowden had assembled a team of very experienced players, most of whom were approaching retirement, together with a few promising youngsters. The first match, on 14 September 1980, was a major success; nearly 10,000 Londoners attended the game at Craven Cottage to see the newly formed side convincingly beat highly regarded Wigan 24–5. On 15 February 1981, more than 15,000 were present to see Fulham take on Wakefield Trinity in
10286-456: The club. The Broncos moved once again, to play their home matches at Griffin Park as tenants of Brentford FC . 2003 marked the club's first Super League playoff appearance, losing in the first round to St. Helens 24–6 at Knowsley Road . The 2005 season was marked by significant activity off the pitch as the club welcomed new chairman and majority shareholder Ian Lenagan who had bought 65% of
10425-469: The code in an extremely competitive sporting market. In 1997 two competitions were run alongside each other in Australia, after which a peace deal in the form of the National Rugby League was formed. The NRL has since become recognised as the sport's flagship competition and since that time has set record TV ratings and crowd figures. The objective in rugby league is to score more points through tries , goals and field goals (also known as drop goals) than
10564-457: The crowd despite being defeated 30–44. Soward put in impressive performances in his short venture in England and in 9 games scored 67 points (5 tries, 23 goals, 1 drop goal). The club's financial struggles were made evident when, on 20 November 2013, the club announced that it would have to enter administration in ten working days if a new owner was not found. On 3 December 2013, London Broncos announced, "The club will be instructing lawyers to file
10703-542: The existing players moved on as free agents, and a new squad began life based at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre for the 1984–85 season. After a single season, the club then moved to a new home at Chiswick Polytechnic Sports Ground in the summer of 1985, and would remain there for five years. Bill Goodwin replaced Lester as coach from 1986 to 1987. In August 1986, Fulham hit a serious cash crisis and were forced to withdraw temporarily from
10842-573: The first of its kind in the world), was held at Crystal Palace in 1903. Organised by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) it subsequently moved to Olympia for the next 32 years. In 1997, the Sevenoaks & District Motor Club started a series of sprint events using part of the old infield link, the main straight and north tower corner. The events lasted three years before being stopped due to park development work. Following discussions with
10981-658: The five years prior to the Second World War , the sport's popularity increased as Frenchmen became disenchanted with the state of French rugby union in the 1930s. However, after the Allied Forces were defeated by Germany in June 1940, the Vichy regime in the south seized assets belonging to rugby league authorities and clubs and banned the sport for its association with the left-wing Popular Front government that had governed France before
11120-530: The football, each play restarting from a set piece position and ended by a tackle. Although the Canadian Football League in particular maintained the word 'rugby' in its name for many years, alluding to that shared past, the introduction of the forward pass and unlimited substitution in North American games created a fundamentally different species of game from either original rugby code. Although
11259-407: The forwards. They are often the most creative and evasive players on the field, relying on running, kicking and handling skills, as well as tactics and set plays, to break the defensive line, instead of brute force. Generally forwards play a more collision oriented game, making ground by pure strength, and tackling near the play-the-ball. Usually, the stand-off/five-eighth and scrum-half/half-back are
11398-406: The fourth tackle a scrum was to be formed. This was increased to six tackles in 1972 and in 1983 the scrum was replaced by a handover. 1967 saw the first professional Sunday matches of rugby league played. The first sponsors, Joshua Tetley and John Player , entered the game for the 1971–72 Northern Rugby Football League season . Television had an enormous impact on the sport of rugby league in
11537-566: The ground, with the ball usually set in a kicking tee , and the opposing team not allowed to directly challenge the kicker. The Super League in Europe and the National Rugby League (NRL) in Australasia are the world's premier club competitions. Globally, rugby league is played internationally , predominantly by European , Australasian , and Pacific Island countries, and is governed by
11676-697: The helm of the Great Britain National Team in 1989, and with 12 Spartans players playing for Great Britain, the Spartans players and coach led Great Britain to the European Nations Championship in 1989 by defeating France, Germany, and Finland by a combined score of 99 – 6 for Great Britain's first European Championship for the Great Britain National Team. The Sports Arena was also used by the London Monarchs, who also played some games at
11815-411: The historic link between the codes continues to be acknowledged, neither Canadian or American football is commonly considered a rugby code today except in the broadest sense, and are more commonly referred to collectively as gridiron codes, or simply as 'football' within their respective countries. Players on the pitch are divided into forwards and backs , although the game's rules apply to all players
11954-493: The home stadium of Crystal Palace Football Club . It was announced in January 2011, as a redevelopment of the current Crystal Palace National Sports Centre, and was planned to be ready for the 2015–16 football season. Crystal Palace F.C. submitted plans to rebuild the stadium as a 40,000 seater football stadium without a running track, but with a new indoor aquatic and sports centre as part of the complex. A London Tramlink extension to
12093-440: The invention of the sport previously called murderball and is not directly linked to rugby union, wheelchair rugby league has grown out of the parent sport, and retains key aspects of that sport such as an egg shaped ball, the forward-pass rule and conversions. While not a Paralympic sport, the sport has its own Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup . A further variation for ambulatory disabled players, physical disability rugby league ,
12232-412: The issue of payments to players. The rules of the game governed by the new Northern Rugby Football Union progressively changed from those of the RFU with the specific aim of producing a faster and more entertaining game to appeal to spectators, on whose income the new organisation and its members depended. In rugby league, points are scored by carrying an oval ball and touching it to the ground beyond
12371-504: The league's inaugural season. Several brand new clubs from Western USA were scheduled to join in 2022 but never played. The new competition is sanctioned by Canada Rugby League , but not yet by the United States governing body. Unfortunately, while some exhibition matches were played in 2021 and 2022, NARL was defunct by 2023 The early 21st century has seen other countries take up the game and compete in international rugby league with
12510-498: The line with ball in hand, but Will Sharp stripped the ball from the Dragons player and Quins managed to hold out for the win. The final game under McDermott saw Harlequins lose to Warrington at home; 7 wins from his last 38 games. It was a shock to Harlequins RL supporters to see McDermott's assistant take over but this bizarre decision seemed to be warranted as Rob Powell oversaw three wins from their first three matches, placing them at
12649-542: The local council and the London Development Agency, sprint racing restarted at the park, with the two-day event held 30/31 May 2010. This event was repeated on the same or adjacent weekend each year, until 2017, when it was held on the August Bank Holiday weekend. The event was suspended in 2018 but took place in May 2019. It was scheduled to take place again in May 2020 and May 2021 but was cancelled due to
12788-610: The majority had left the ground before the kick-off of the League fixture. Plymouth Albion and Leeds Carnegie were the Union opponents for the Union team whilst the Rugby League team played Huddersfield and St Helens. On the field, the Harlequins RL club started with an encouraging 8,213 watching the home game against St Helens on 11 February 2006 but a heavy loss was followed by further consecutive home losses against Wakefield and Castleford, before
12927-570: The majority shareholders and primary sponsors of the club, and the immediate future looked very bright. Highlights that year included victories at the Stoop over Canberra in the World Club Challenge and comprehensive league victories against Bradford and Wigan . In 1998, as part of rugby league's "on the road" scheme, London Broncos played Bradford Bulls at Tynecastle in Edinburgh in front of over 7,000 fans. Success continued in 1998 with
13066-532: The mid-1980s for a couple of seasons, after they were forced to leave their previous ground of Craven Cottage . London County Cricket Club was a short-lived cricket club founded by the Crystal Palace Company . In 1898 they invited W. G. Grace to help them form a first-class cricket club. Grace accepted the offer and became the club's secretary, manager and captain. As a result, he severed his connection with Gloucestershire County Cricket Club during
13205-453: The mid-1990s, it has increasingly borrowed techniques, tactics and even laws from rugby league, while high-profile players and coaches from the league game have increasingly gone on to success in the union code in those countries where both codes are popular (e.g. Andy Farrell , Jason Robinson and Henry Paul ). The inherent similarities between rugby league and rugby union have at times led to experimental hybrid games being played that use
13344-560: The most finals at the ground, five, but never lifted the cup there, whilst Aston Villa won all four of their games there. On 2 December 1905, the ground also held the first England rugby union international match against New Zealand in England, New Zealand winning 15–0. On Wednesday 18 August 1965, the ground was the venue of the rugby league match in which the Commonwealth XIII rugby league team were defeated 7–15 by New Zealand . It also played host to Fulham Rugby League in
13483-530: The most popular sporting events. The Rugby League European Federation are responsible for developing rugby league in Europe . In England, rugby league has traditionally been associated with the historic northern counties of Yorkshire , Lancashire , and Cumberland , where the game originated, especially in towns and cities along the M62 corridor . Its popularity has also increased elsewhere. As of 2024 , only two of
13622-413: The national sport of the country. Five main variant sports of rugby league exist worldwide; Touch , OzTag , League tag , Nines , and Sevens . Touch, OzTag, and League Tag are all non-contact versions of the sport, where as Nines and Sevens are both reduced form (shorter match times and smaller teams) of the sport. Touch (also known as touch football or touch rugby) is a variant of rugby league that
13761-498: The new Super League, although the club was dissolved in 1997. In 2006, the Super League admitted the Catalans Dragons, a team from Perpignan in the southern Languedoc-Roussillon region. They have subsequently reached the 2007 Challenge Cup Final and made the playoffs of the 2008 Super League XIII season. The success of the Dragons in Super League has initiated a renaissance in French rugby league, with new-found enthusiasm for
13900-652: The next day at Wembley Stadium. The Manchester Spartans second National Championship came only one week after the Spartans had won the European Club Championship in Italy when the Spartans defeated Dublin, Amsterdam, Berlin, and Milan to become the first British team to ever win the European Club Championship. The player/head coach of the Manchester Spartans was Terry Smith, who also was the Great Britain National Team Head Coach. With Smith at
14039-405: The north of England there have been complaints about its lack of profile in the British media. On the eve of the 2017 Rugby League World Cup final where England would face Australia, English amateur rugby league coach Ben Dawson stated, "we're in the final of a World Cup. First time in more than 30 years and there's no coverage anywhere". France first played rugby league as late as 1934, where in
14178-404: The opposing team's goal line; this is called a try , and is the primary method of scoring, worth four points. The opposing team attempts to stop the attacking side scoring points by tackling the player carrying the ball and denying forward progress. On occasion, where a clear try scoring opportunity has been thwarted by foul play, a penalty try may be awarded without the ball being grounded over
14317-475: The opposition within the 80 minutes of play. If after two-halves of play, each consisting of forty minutes, the two teams are drawing , a draw may be declared, or the game may enter extra time under the golden point rule, depending on the relevant competition's format. The try is the most common form of scoring, and a team will usually attempt to score one by running and kicking the ball further upfield or passing from player-to-player in order to manoeuvre around
14456-400: The opposition's defence. A try involves touching the ball to the ground on or beyond the defending team's goal-line and is worth four points. A goal is worth two points and may be gained from a conversion or a penalty . A field goal, or drop goal, is only worth one point and is gained by dropping and then kicking the ball on the half volley between the uprights in open play. A field goal has
14595-403: The owners wanted their own football club to play at the venue, so they formed Crystal Palace F.C. . The club were forced to leave by the military in 1915, and now play at nearby Selhurst Park . The largest 'domestic' attendance ever at the stadium was in the 1913 Cup final between Aston Villa and Sunderland , when 121,919 spectators squeezed into the stands. The previous world record had been
14734-578: The pitch at the Cottage had disintegrated in the wet winter following the collapse of the main drain to the River Thames under the Miller Stand. The club also played several one-off games in 1983 at various football grounds around London; matches were played at Wealdstone 's Lower Mead stadium, Hendon 's Claremont Road ground, Brentford 's Griffin Park and Chelsea's Stamford Bridge . Despite winning
14873-542: The position they play, similarly to association football . Substitutes (generally referred to as "the bench") are allowed in the sport, and are typically used when a player gets tired or injured , although they can also be used tactically. Each team is currently allowed four substitutes, and in Australia and New Zealand, these players occupy shirt numbers 14 to 22. There are no limitations on which players must occupy these interchangeable slots. Generally, twelve interchanges are allowed in any game from each team, although in
15012-462: The potential benefits of establishing a rugby league club in the capital, resigned from the Warrington board to become managing director of Fulham R.L.F.C. The Rugby Football League (RFL), keen to encourage the expansion of the sport beyond its traditional northern heartland, accepted the new club at once. One of the game's leading players, Reg Bowden , was recruited by Genders to act as player-coach and
15151-444: The reins until May 1989 when Ross Strudwick was appointed. The club returned to the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre in 1990, this time making it their home for three seasons. In May 1991, York and Fulham toured Russia. Prior to the start of the 1991–92 season the club's name was officially changed from Fulham RLFC to London Crusaders RLFC. A slightly more successful period on the pitch begun at this point. Ross Strudwick
15290-533: The same ground and have access to the training facilities at the Richardson Evans Playing Fields, Roehampton Vale , though this was little more than a public park and not actually fit for a professional club of either code. In practice, there was no integration between the rugby codes, no joint player development, and the administrative and commercial resource sharing was little more than the RU club allowing
15429-501: The same way. Each position has a designated number to identify himself from other players. These numbers help to identify which position a person is playing. The system of numbering players is different depending on which country the match is played in. In Australia and New Zealand, each player is usually given a number corresponding to their playing position on the field. However, since 1996 European teams have been able to grant players specific squad numbers, which they keep without regard to
15568-496: The scrum see rugby league scrummage . Forward positions are traditionally named after the player's position in the scrum yet are equal with respect to "normal play" with the exception of the hooker. Forward positions are traditionally assigned as follows: Rugby league is played in over 70 nations throughout the world. Papua New Guinea is the only country to have rugby league as its national sport . Four countries – Australia, England, France, and New Zealand – have teams that play at
15707-421: The second time came emphatically to an end with a televised 0–70 defeat by Wigan, a record score in a Challenge Cup semi-final. On 29 June 2013, London Broncos announced the loan signing of Australian Jamie Soward until the end of the season. Soward quickly became a fans favourite with a man of the match performance on his debut v Salford (scoring a try and kicking five goals) and received a standing ovation from
15846-497: The shares. This was followed by the announcement of a partnership with Harlequins Rugby Union Club that saw the club return to The Stoop Memorial Ground , this time formally renamed as Harlequins RL and adopting the host club's kit and crest for the 2006 season . Ian Lenagan became the majority shareholder in the London Broncos in July 2005 and within a week of his arrival, the team was formally renamed "Harlequins RL". Press releases of
15985-524: The sideline. Rugby league and rugby union are distinct sports with many similarities and a shared origin. Both have the same fundamental rules, are played for 80 minutes and feature an oval-shaped ball and H-shaped goalposts. Both have rules that the ball cannot be passed forward, and dropping it forwards leads to a scrum. Both use tries as the central scoring method and conversion kicks , penalty goals and drop goals as additional scoring methods. However, there are differences in how many points each method
16124-526: The specific issues associated with a tag based game. Rugby League played with nine players per team with nine minutes per half, in addition to slight rule modifications to aid the game. Rugby League played with seven players per team with seven minutes per half, in addition to slight rule modifications to aid the game. The top five attendances for rugby league test matches (International) are: The top five attendances for domestic based rugby league matches are: * NRL double header played to open Round 1 of
16263-633: The sport in the south of the country where most of the Super XIII teams are based. In other parts of Europe, the game is played at semi-professional and amateur level. As of 2023, there is no professional rugby league in North America. From 2017 to 2020, the Toronto Wolfpack were North America 's only active professional Rugby League team, competing in the English Rugby League system. They won
16402-480: The sport of rugby league in England remained exclusively a northern based game for over forty years until the formation in 1980 of a new club in London, Fulham . In June 1980, Fulham Football Club chairman Ernie Clay set up a rugby league team at Craven Cottage , with the primary intention of creating another income stream for the football club. Warrington director Harold Genders, who had helped to persuade Clay of
16541-451: The stadium as England Monarchs before the team became defunct. The Monarchs were unfortunately never able to follow up on their title-winning success in the inaugural World League of American Football season of 1991, never again making it to another World Bowl, the playoffs, or even a second winning record. Their title defence never materialised, ending 1992 with a 2-7-1 tally; after a two-year league hiatus, four seasons from 1995 to 1998 in
16680-471: The start of the forthcoming 1994–95 season. Gordon was replaced by a Brisbane coach, Gary Grienke. The first home game under the new Broncos moniker was against Keighley at Hendon F.C. 's ground at Claremont Road, though most home games were still played at Barnet Copthall. For the 1995–96 season the club found another new home base, returning to south-west London at The Stoop Memorial Ground , home of Harlequins Rugby Union Club . Despite finishing fourth in
16819-490: The straights only had hard-packed gravel. Improvements begun in December 1936 increased the circuit to 2 miles, and tarmac-covered the entire length. 20 cars entered the first London Grand Prix on 17 July 1937, a race eventually won by Prince Bira in his ERA R2B Romulus at an average speed of 56.5 mph (91 km/h). Later that year, during the International Imperial Trophy meeting also won by Bira,
16958-459: The team into life briefly, with three more wins from the next four, but after that there was an end-of-season collapse to join the start-of-season collapse. The round 25 game at Catalan saw the Quins bottom of the table with Catalan on a similar points tally and the game looked likely to decide who would finish bottom. The Quins were winning 16–12 with just a couple of minutes to go when Catalan were over
17097-516: The team pull off an incredible opening win against St Helens and by 7 July the team was 5th in the table, but a collapse in form in the second half of the season – a recurring theme of the McDermott reign – saw the team win only once from eight matches to finish 9th. At the end of the season, Ian Lenagan took over control of fellow Super League side Wigan Warriors and was given two years to sell his Harlequins shares. In 2008, Harlequins RL got off to
17236-436: The time suggested that this would make the combined club "a powerhouse in both codes" according to Mark Evans of the Union club and provide a "very, very strong future for rugby league in the capital" according to Lenagan. The arrangement between the clubs was described as a "long-term partnership". At the time of the announcement there were many projected benefits of the two clubs sharing and pooling; both clubs were to play at
17375-459: The top of the ladder. Away wins at Leeds Rhinos and St Helens seemed to herald a new dawn, however, the club's run of success was ended with a club record 82–6 defeat to Warrington Wolves on 20 March 2011 and the team were within a try of losing by the all-time Super League record margin of −80 held by Salford City Reds. After that the Harlequins only won two more games in the next six months and
17514-404: The top ten teams from the 1994–95 First Division in a 'Centenary League Championship', effectively a "dry run" for Super League. Faced with much stronger opposition, London struggled and finished second from last. The club moved once more prior to the start of the 1996 inaugural summer season of Super League, this time to south-east London to play at The Valley , home of Charlton Athletic , which
17653-482: The try line. In addition to tries, points can be scored by kicking goals. Drop goals (or field goals) can be attempted from the hand at any time for a single point. Following a successful try, the scoring team gains a free kick to try at goal with a conversion worth a further two points. Penalty kicks at goal, known simply as penalties, may also be awarded for general foul play, and are also worth two points. Unlike drop goals, penalty kicks and conversions are taken from
17792-559: The twelve Super League teams are based outside of these traditional counties: Catalans Dragons and London Broncos . One other team from outside the United Kingdom, Toulouse Olympique , competes in the British rugby league system , although not at the highest tier Super League level, but rather in the second tier Championship . Super League average attendances are in the 8,000 to 9,500 range. The average Super League match attendance in 2014
17931-566: The war. The sport was unbanned after the Liberation of Paris in August 1944 and the collapse of the Vichy regime, although it was still actively marginalised by the French authorities until the 1990s. Despite this, the national side appeared in the finals of the 1954 and 1968 World Cups, and the country hosted the 1954 event. In 1996, a French team, Paris Saint-Germain was one of eleven teams which formed
18070-485: The work Medway Dragons had done in growing rugby league in Kent . The game proved to be popular with 3,930 turning up to watch London narrowly beaten 12–14 by Hull. Tony Rea was appointed as the club's head coach for a second time in August 2012 taking over from Rob Powell. In 2013, London Broncos used four venues for their home games with the majority being played at the Twickenham Stoop. On 8 June 2013, London once again played
18209-469: Was 8,365. In 2018 average Super League match attendance was 8,547. Ranked the eighth most popular sport in the UK overall, rugby league is the 27th most popular participation sport in England according to figures released by Sport England ; the total number of rugby league participants in England aged 16 and over was 44,900 in 2017. This is a 39% drop from 10 years ago. While the sport is largely concentrated in
18348-425: Was appointed Head Coach. Monie only stayed in the job until the last month of the 2000 Super League season with the club having had mediocre results during his tenure. Rea took over as caretaker coach until the end of the season and Broncos eventually reached mid-table security. Rea then resigned his Chief Executive role at the end of the 2000 season to become Head Coach on a full-time basis. York made an approach to
18487-538: Was created and had its first world cup in 2022 to coincide with the rescheduled 2021 Rugby League World Cup competitions. Rugby league football takes its name from the bodies that split to create a new form of rugby, distinct from that run by the Rugby Football Unions, in Britain, Australia, and New Zealand between 1895 and 1908. The first of these, the Northern Rugby Football Union , was established in 1895 as
18626-517: Was followed by a close home defeat to a Wigan team after each team scored. Harlequins were at this point 9th out of 12. On 8 July 2006, Ian Lenagan removed Tony Rea as head coach, and moved him "upstairs" to a position on the club's board of directors. In his place, Brian McDermott , an assistant coach at Leeds Rhinos , was appointed as head coach. Results at home improved, taking Harlequins RL to 7th place in Super League XI . The 2007 season saw
18765-476: Was hosted by England during October and November 2022, staged the Men's , Women's and Wheelchair competitions together for the first time. The competition formerly featured 16 teams, but has been cut down to 10 for the upcoming 2026 Rugby League World Cup . The Asia-Pacific Rugby League Confederation 's purpose is to spread the sport of rugby league throughout their region along with other governing bodies such as
18904-501: Was located in Crystal Palace Park , the outline of the track can still be seen on maps providing access to the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre that is also located in the park. The circuit opened in 1927 and the first race, for motorcycles, was on 21 May 1927. The circuit was 1 mile long, and ran on pre-existing paths through the park, including a loop past the lake. The surface had tarmac-covered bends, but
19043-446: Was replaced as coach by Darryl van der Velde in 1992 but continued as club manager until 1993. In June 1993 the club moved once again, from Crystal Palace National Sports Centre to Barnet Copthall arena. In November 1993, London Crusaders imposed a 20% pay cut on all staff to ease financial problems. With the club in financial straights, the RFL briefly took ownership of the Crusaders in 1993–94 to protect their southern outpost, but
19182-578: Was transferred to the London Development Agency (now GLA Land and Property ) and is managed by Greenwich Leisure Limited , under their Better brand logo. The athletics stadium has a capacity of 15,500, which can be increased to 24,000 with temporary seating. It hosts international athletics meetings . As well as sporting events, the stadium has played host to a number of live open air concerts, by artists such as Coldplay , Bruce Springsteen , Sex Pistols and Depeche Mode . The stadium
19321-565: Was won by St. Helens 34–24 in front of a 4,924 crowd, which was higher than all of their attendances in the year before. In the match, seven players made their debuts for the club. In the 2012 season, the Broncos played two home games "on the road" away from the Twickenham Stoop , on 6 June vs Bradford at Leyton Orient FC 's Brisbane Road , where they were narrowly beaten 22–29 in front of 2,844 fans, and on 20 June vs Hull F.C. at Gillingham FC 's Priestfield Stadium , as recognition for
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