HAVING begun the 2024 season with a great win over Halifax, Oldham now have a friendly with Super League side London Broncos with Sean Long’s side looking to produce another strong performance.
Coach
Leading Broncos into the 2024 Super League season is Mike Eccles. Eccles began his career in rugby league in a Strength and Conditioning role with Salford, which he held for three years, before being promoted to Head of Strength and Conditioning in 2011.
A year later, he relocated to the capital to join the Broncos as a Strength and Conditioning coach and soon became head of the department. Three years later, Eccles was promoted to Head of Performance at the club and, in May 2022, he was promoted to Head Coach on an interim basis.
At the end of the 2022 season, he was offered the role on a permanent basis. From there, he guided Broncos to the play-offs and steered them to promotion to Super League after defeating Toulouse in the Championship Grand Final.
One to Watch
Emmanuel Waine began his professional career with PNG Hunters in the Queensland Cup, the second tier of rugby league in Australia.
Prior to his move to London, he had been training with current NRL side The Dolphins. He only made fourteen appearances for London in 2023 due to injury, but given his explosive and dynamic performances, he has been given a one-year extension with the club.
Although London have only had two pre-season fixtures, Waine’s performances have already sparked conversations amongst fans and the media.
Recent Form
London ended their championship season in great form, travelling to Sheffield in the elimination playoff posting a huge 42-0 win. They backed this up the following Sunday with another away win – this time at league favourites Featherstone in the play-off semi-final with a 36-26 win. They finished the year off with an 18-14 Grand Final victory over Toulouse and gained promotion to Super League.
Pre-season, so far, has been a little different with their first game a confidence-building 14-14 draw with Castleford Tigers. Most recently, London were on the end of a 50-16 drubbing by Huddersfield Giants and will be looking for a response.
Previous Meetings
It doesn’t make for pleasant reading when it comes to our previous meetings with London, given the last five have all resulted in a win for the Broncos.
Heading into this friendly however, Oldham are playing with great confidence and plenty of potential.
Tickets are still available for the game at Boundary Park and are priced at £16 for adults, £10 for concessions and free for under-16s.
Fans can purchase tickets on our ticketing page.
