London are woeful

The week after Craig Gower left London, London were thrashed by 82-4.

Gower left London because the coach didn't like the way Gower was trying to get the players to perform. Apparently the coach thought that he knew how to get the players to perform.

Before he left London, Gower had told his mate Ryan Girdler in Australia that the training system at the Broncos was hopeless. Having played in an NRL Grand Final winning team (Penrith 2003), for NSW Blues in State of Origin, and for Australia, Gower could be expected to know something about a professional training regimen.

Unfortunately most players in the team, apart from a few exceptions like Soward, are not physically fit enough to play professional rugby league. This is a real scandal, responsibility for which lies at the feet of the coach.

A coach with a resume of failure like Tony Rea's in his latest stint at London Broncos, would not have lasted more than six weeks at any NRL club. He would not have lasted more than two months at any top Super League club. But Rea has been producing on field defeats for the club for a year now. The reason is that Rea works for an owner who apparently does not judge people on their work performance. Otherwise neither coach Rea nor the CEO Gus McKay, would still be working there.

The sooner a new investor or investors can be found to take over the London Broncos, and cleans out the CEO and the coach, as well as several players, the sooner that London Broncos will be able to perform again as a professional rugby league club.

I only saw the secon half on TV but I saw the least competitive (committed) rugby league team I have ever seen at anty level (and I'm in my 50s). They were uncoached.

Yes I have watched a handful of games on Māori TV but they were local games IIRC... Mt Albert was one of the teams and the game was played at North Harbour Stadium in Auckland. The commentary often switched between Māori and English. There is also a sports chat show on the same channel which interested me because there were a couple of ex-Kiwi players on it, one who I recognised immediately... Awen Guttenbeil... and another who had me struggling to remember his name for a while... it was Wairangi Koopu.

Utter, utter embarrassment to RL. I've been one of the people saying on here for years that London bring absolutely nothing to SL. They stole an SL place from the far, far more deserving Keighley which completely ripped the heart out of that great club, and this is what we get? Absolutely pathetic. No-one in the capital gives the slightest s**t about them, they don't bring media, exposure or anything else that supporters say they do, a London SL club just simply will never, ever work.
For the love of God, drop them down two leagues and give someone more deserving a chance.
Enough already.

Utter e,simple as.

Turned it off after 35 mins,so predictable,so boring.

What a shame it's come to this.

Gone are the days when my dad and me watched the the CC with excitement and gusto,damn!

They have got alot of kids playing the game. The whole problem with British RL is not enough people play the game. Apparently more kids play in London than West Yorks. That is something worth retaining.

We were lucky to get nil!

6,300 bothered making the effort to get to the game. 300 from London some 200 miles away and 6,000 from 8 miles away. Yes, London are in disarray and looking down both barrels, but the crap attendance is entirely down to Wigan and the empathy of their fans.

Dally I respect your point mate, but my argument is why aren't these kids following their home team then? They've supposedly been developing youth rugby league in the capital for many years now, but rather than the Broncos crowds rise they've actually declined further still....?
The reason? It's simple. At school we had compulsory sports lessons like badminton and basketball. So, on paper I was developing an interest in these two sports. But in reality I wasn't - I did them them for an hour a week because I had to, but I have never attended a single basketball game live (or badminton event!). It's all very well saying loads of kids in London are playing RL, but both on and off the field this has seemingly never had a positive effect for London. Over the last fifteen years it appears (from an outsider's perspective) that they have gone backwards in every single aspect.
They had a fairly good little run from prob 96-99, but that was their peak. They're completely fooked IMO, and I don't think anyone in Keighley or Fev will shed a tear if they ever lose their SL place, but I'm sure they never will anyway due to the RFL's refusal to admit defeat.

Dally I respect your point mate, but my argument is why aren't these kids following their home team then? They've supposedly been developing youth rugby league in the capital for many years now, but rather than the Broncos crowds rise they've actually declined further still....?
The reason? It's simple. At school we had compulsory sports lessons like badminton and basketball. So, on paper I was developing an interest in these two sports. But in reality I wasn't - I did them them for an hour a week because I had to, but I have never attended a single basketball game live (or badminton event!). It's all very well saying loads of kids in London are playing RL, but both on and off the field this has seemingly never had a positive effect for London. Over the last fifteen years it appears (from an outsider's perspective) that they have gone backwards in every single aspect.
They had a fairly good little run from prob 96-99, but that was their peak. They're completely fooked IMO, and I don't think anyone in Keighley or Fev will shed a tear if they ever lose their SL place, but I'm sure they never will anyway due to the RFL's refusal to admit defeat.

Very harsh words.......but sadly many of them true

Again, very true !

I disagree. For a club with an 8,000,000 population to draw from 300 is beyond pathetic. God knows what the attendance would have been if held 8 miles from the Stoop.
Face it GF, if it was upto anyone else other than the RFL this would be the final straw.

You could say the same about Hull KR. There's quite a strong amateur scene in Hull but it wasn't long ago that that you sold your ground to a supermarket and were getting pathetic crowds at a windswept new ground that was worse than most non-league sports clubs use.

London is a big place and the mistake (or more liklely harsh realiy of survival) has been moving around. If it had been possible it would have been best to have stuck it out in one location. But it would not have been feasible to have stayed these last 33 years at Fulham or since the start of SL at Charlton. If it had been then these kids may over time have helped shape a local following.

I think also we need to look at the game itself. For the lifelong follower, it's great as it is to the uninitiated when played at the highest level on the big stage - some international matches, the cup final and grand final. But when played in front of a couple of thousand in a largely empty stadium and a below par match? London have probably attracted more NEW spectators over the years thsn any other club. But they don't come back. Why? I think because the game is just too predictable these days. People charging up 4 times. Maybe passing wider on the 5th and kicking on the 6th. I can ASSURE you I have taken new spectators and when you look at it through their eyes it's not too good. In fact some would say downright boring.

To begin with, 200 turned up knowing how poorly their team had been playing all season and how small the chance was of their team winning this match. Those same 200 have endured regular humiliations of the team they support for a few seasons now. They travelled 200 miles at great expense and had to face the return journey having suffered yet another humiliation and on free to air TV.

Contrast that with Wigan fans, who always reckon they turn up in great numbers, who live just 8 miles away and whose team has been in lots of finals and presently sits second in the league.

Sorry but Wigan fans were embarrassing in their absence and those who couldn't be bothered making that arduous trip up the East Lancs Road should feel embarrassed by themselves.

well said

Just being pedantic but how many Pie fans would use the A580 to get to the LSV ?

I agree that the Wigan turnout was pathetic. But, I think MORE may have travelled if it had been played a bit further away and therefore more of an event or proper semi. To play it at Leigh sent out the message that it was non-event. A self-fulfilling prophesy.

I had a season ticket at Wigan for 25 years, this year is the first one I have missed, for a couple of reasons, one being some point last season, I cant recall which game, but once again the game was over at half time, I spent the second half increasing my high score on Angry Birds, that night when I got home, my wife asked me as she always does, did we win and was it a good game, I honestly answered I couldn't remember the score but I think that was me done with my season ticket as I couldn't stand being so bored and next year (this) I would pick and choose my games. The irony of this is that I got my season ticket as a gift each year so picking and choosing my games would cost me money so finance (which is often touted as the only reason crowds are down) was nothing to do with the decision to effectively turn my back on the game I loved.

I also was lucky enough in December to have my first child, now again that had no bearing on my decision to not renew my season ticket as I found out my wife was pregnant the Wednesday before Good Friday and I couldn't honestly see myself stood anywhere else than in the away end that day.

I haven't been to one game this season, and didn't bother with going today as quite frankly it would have been a waste of time, money and time away from my family for something that was quite obviously going to be a walk over due to the complete and utter incompetence of the London club. Is that Wigan's fault? Of course it isn't you can only roll over what is in front of you! Should I be embarrassed by not going today? I don't think I should!

I would rather watch a good game and loose than a bad game and win. I have said many times, one of my favourite seasons as a Wigan fan was 2006, I was worried about the game on Monday morning, and even more worried at about 7.55 each Friday night!

I watched the game live at home this afternoon, well I had half of one eye on it, and have just finished watching it again, and I am so glad I didn't waste my time or money for that! In fact in some sports teams have sometimes refunded away fans for pitiful performances and I honestly think London should perhaps do that for the fans who travelled all the way to sunny Leigh today and perhaps are still not home as I type this!

I couldn't believe how poor the game was today, perhaps someone who has been all year can give an indication why.

A few excuses so far, game was a forgone conclusion, too expensive, too far away, too close, wrong time of year.

The idiots that post about Huddersfields low crowds will be some who didn't turn up today, priceless, absolutely priceless.

Personally i reckon we should thank the fans that paid £20 to travel to a complete non event of a game that was being shown on tv too, rather than popping at the ones that didnt. Many neutral saying they turned it off as it was boring. i loved standing there watching us win 70 - 0 but if i had remembered to take my nintendo DS with me thats how i would have spent the second half.

The effort from the Wigan fans was pathetic?

Let's say the semi had been against Saints at the Halliwell Jones. Wigan take 6,000 and Saints take 6,000 and suddenly we're all fairly happy there's a 12,000 crowd on in a CC semi-final. 12-13,000 is fairly average for a CC semi.

And that's a conservative hypothetical example. When given a higher quality of opposition and the prospect of a closer game, more would probably choose to go. London were never going to win today, everyone knew that and it showed.

Get a grip. When one side brings next to no-one, the attendance will be poor.

Quite true. A CC semi final should have been considered a much bigger deal for London's fans than Wigan's, who let's face it have been to many over the years.
Yet the Wigan fans are being berated for an attendance which was basically very low because there was no support from London.

I don't really blame Wigan fans. I blame the RFL for the shabby non-event the semi finals have been for years. If you're going to make the games on neutral grounds, they need to be events. Otherwise they may as well just be a home game.