[quote="Moe Lester":21owlicz]Enjoyed that. A close, attritional game with some good defence from both sides. I expected the result to go the way it did but perhaps not by that margin, I had expected a larger outcome and it could have been if only for the goal line defence. The better players were those contracted players, I thought. I like the look of Monk, COB at 7 and Adebiyi was his usual self. Bienek was horrific with ball in hand, the two trialist wingers weren't the best and the bench was a real disappointment.[/quote:21owlicz] Can’t say I enjoyed it nor the journey there and back but I thought we were lively first 15/20 and then just fell away. Agree with Rfe Goole seemed to want it more. Lovell going off, them stepping it up after the break and effective targeting of our edges especially with kicks did for us. They deserved to win and whilst I don’t see a home loss to a L1 side as anything remotely positive I thought we were better than I feared. I thought the 2 Aussies looked promising. COB is clearly our go to this year. I thought his kicking was a mixed bag but felt he did a lot of hard work. I thought Aaron Ball offered more than I had feared. The rest the jury is still out but our 2 looks like he may have some toe but we rarely got the chance to see it and Goole handled him well. Was expecting to chase down the Goole player for their second try but it didn’t happen. Overall it looks a side that could compete with most Championship sides. Whether we win many time will tell.

[quote="Deadcowboys1":3sd4gbpr]At least we've managed to avoid a mauling from Wakefield. Bradford & Fev will be tough enough.[/quote:3sd4gbpr] Take that all those who say we’re negative on this forum!

No real surprise that result today. Goole played basic rugby league, we didn’t. First 20 mins was thinking ok this is not going to be too bad, then as we kept giving them the ball and couldn’t get out of our own half for rest of the game it looked a bit dire. The 2 wingers, mixed bag, lad on the left out of his depth, lad on the right was actually quite impressed with him, he did a lot of work carrying the ball up. Most worrying thing is it seemed to be the seasoned players making the daftest errors. The big Aussie looked ok though Looking at that it’s going to be a long season me thinks.

After a quarter of the match, thought you were going to walk it, then it all went en forme de poire. Agree with BT, at least in that early purple patch, your No2 impressed. You were in a double-damn situation: win and nobody outside this forum gives you any credit; lose and all those who spend the off-season in head-up-bum hibernation and know nothing about your travails will shout giant-killing from the rooftops. For what it's worth, think Goole will thrive in League 1 in a way that the previous freshers, Cornwall, have not and also that Eccles will lick your lot into shape and that you'll be okay. All the best!

Our loss to Goole Vikings highlighted some of the challenges the club is facing, particularly in terms of financial resources and squad depth. Goole, with their larger budget, more experienced squad, and a match under their belt the week before, showed their advantage as the game wore on. London’s lack of preparation was evident as we struggled to keep up, especially in the second half. While Goole’s victory was deserved, some of London’s more experienced players were the ones making critical errors, particularly when it came to respecting possession and giving away unnecessary penalties. That said, there were bright spots in the performance, notably from the two wingers, and the play of Connor O’Beirne, who showed promise. Jamie Shaull's experience & poor Broncos execution on last-tackle plays, avoidable errors, and the sin-binning for skipper Will Lovell all contributed to a loss of momentum. I can't summarise the poor 2nd half! However, the Broncos’ ownership situation needs to be resolved quickly, as a lack of stability is only adding to the pressure during what is already a tough start to the season. An injection of limited funding could make all the difference in whether the team can challenge for a mid-table finish or struggle to avoid relegation to Championship One. As for improvement, it’s clear that building chemistry through more training and reducing the number of errors will be key. With the financial constraints, focusing on loan deals from higher-level clubs or uncovering talent from lower leagues could help fill some gaps in the squad. Strengthening the defence, particularly in line speed and marker play, and fine-tuning the attack to better utilise players like Walker, Lovell, Bienek and Adebiyi will be important. The team has potential, but they need quick action to improve and build momentum.

I hadn't really thought about it but I guess there's pressure on Bienek, Lovell, Adebiyi, Stock in ways there never has been before. No pressure o them to win to any degree prior to this season.