So squad numbers now announced. When they get around to adding in Palumbo, unless he’s done an O’Donnell, that leaves us with 17 plus 6 kids who between them have played about 3 games. That doesn’t feel like a standard approach to squad building or ideal. We’ve forgotten to do it as a club so let’s say ta ta and all the best to the surprisingly large amount of players who came and went like a summer breeze last season with often no mention of their joining and even more frequently no mention of their leaving. Some good. More OK, Sadly too many not quite of the standard. Here’s to better days for our recruitment process.
Curran, Mocedreke, Ferreira, Latu, Foster, Gahan, Coates, Ramsey, Tuialatu, the Greehalgh brothers, Thorman, Juma, Vrahnos, Thomas, Blakemore, Oakley, Pelligra. And of course O’Donnell. Would he have been a world beater? As he didn’t make it to the start of the season we’ll never know.

Squad now announced on Twitter and Palumbo still not there so looks like he too has gone. Consensus seems to be, that the squad is thin. Naturally. Here’s hoping we add some more swiftly. I assume we’ll be playing our Academy side in the Capital Challenge...too risky to play any of our 1st team squad surely?

The Acadamy side is almost the 1st team squad BT. It's almost too late to bring in some quality to be competitive against Batley.

Certainly more cross over than I’d like DC.
I’m less concerned about our performance in the 1st match I think we’ll be solid but it’s the second, 3rd and 4th after we’ve taken a couple of knocks to a couple of the starters that are the real concern. There’s a couple of games in there we could do with winning and then there’s the positives of winning at home early doors. Got to be a concern that once again we haven’t got our ducks in a row for start of season.
By way of comparison 2 of our potential opponents towards the bottom half of the league Swinton and Whitehaven have squads of 26 and 22 respectively but worth remembering Haven have been open about financial challenges. Others like BatleyBarrow and York also have bigger squads Really tough times these for Broncos really not sure what’s going on: thin squad, thin on numbers, sponsorships - not announced with season imminent. Sigh.

Palumbo has gone home

Our recruitment is shocking but when it comes to anti- recruitment we are way ahead of anyone else: 20 out the door and counting in the space of a year.

Palumbo's exit has been confirmed https://londonbroncosrl.com/2023/01/17/ ... australia/

Palumbo's exit has been confirmed https://londonbroncosrl.com/2023/01/17/ ... australia/

Which means we are down to 16 plus 6 youngsters. Based on my limited exposure last season, it takes a while (age wise) to play a part on the first team. Hoyes and Allen started at York and Parke and Bill Leyland were Interchanges. York scraped home eventually. So the youngsters can contribute, but need to be doing that from a position of strength (depth). Not sure a team who's match 17 (sorry 16 now !) is around mid table level can support having inexperienced youngsters as their immediate replacements.

Perhaps the two new coaches (where are they?) may find themselves asked to don match kit!

Did smile at Ethan Natoli's interview. " professional Rugby League campaign in the UK with London Broncos ". I was busy trying to work out what part of the London Broncos set-up was professional. I came to the conclusion it was the League rather than the club!

Big Time's list of departures was very good. Accepting there were players in that list for which they needed to be playing a League lower than the Championship, we've lost more match day first choice players than we've gained, plus a big hit on the next level depth. Only four new players (Natoli, Raiwalui, Bassett and Stock. Everybody else (except Howorth perhaps) played for the Broncos last season. Siti, Curran, Foster, Gahan, Tuialatu and Palumbo would have all been amongst the starters, interchanges or as a minimum next in line.

Before the start of last season we all felt, at best, that the volume of L1 players coming in was a gamble. As the numbers increased the concern only grew. We now know we were absolutely right to be concerned - our L1 coach had a good working knowledge of L1 players but the volume brought in and perhaps the quality just weren’t right. On the face of it pretty predictable.
It looks to me like Eccles has been good at getting the L1 players off our books, theoretically freeing up funds, but unfortunately we now seem to have trouble attracting anyone else. We can’t keep hoping ex players will return or that Academy players will come through- the attrition rate is too high. We appear to be in some difficulties. We have to pin our hopes on a strong start to the season and hope to build momentum ....but the squad is paper thin. That Haven game away in particular is a potential win. Will we do it? Really confusing two steps forward, two steps back.

Also Smithers for all the chat about bringing in World Cup players we’ve actually lost as many as we’ve gained with both Tuilatu and Palumbo going. So that’s all good.

BigTime. Aren't we actually down on World Cup players with Siti and Gahan departing to make it four so a net loss of two?

You’re right! We’ve excelled ourselves. I understand from loverugbyleague.com that the club have assured them they’ll provide an update on Situ and Curran shortly. Which I assume will be they’ve left. We are very reactive about our announcements. They only mention Palumbo when everyone does the maths on the squad numbers and realises he’s missing......and I’m still awaiting the announcement that Juma etc have joined let alone that they’ve left!

Could end up the first 4 spectators through the gate get a place on the bench at this rate.

I think I saw a poster in local cafe to that effect. Just scan QR code. Bring your own shirt obviously....as we don’t have any.

No 2 players being allowed to wear the same shirt from our vast & varied designs.

Squad announced is basically the first team. I assume it's the only players we've got.

That looks about right Buzza.. let’s hope Skolars aren’t competitive or we could be in strife for 1st few rounds of Championship.

Let’s be honest we’ve made a hash of our recruitment yet again. It can’t be deliberate we have so few adults in our squad. On the plus side they’ve all played together and know Eccles style of play so if we can get a full 17 out for games we may do OK.

Hughes is treating fans like mugs. He clearly doesn't want to spend much on the squad while the IMG changes are pending. Either that or he's brassic. Either way his time is up.

Skolars squad announced. Larger than ours. Noticeable that none of their players who came over to us last season are in their squad this season even the ones who went back mid season. I suspect that means they’ve probably dropped out of the game which is a bit of an own goal all round for London RL.

Rarely did the 21 (24 this time) named a couple of days before each match last year, actually include 21 truly available players. Some were on long term injuries. It would be a (pleasant) surprise if everybody were available on Friday, but no doubt some will be doing their paid job and others carrying niggles that won't be risked. It's only a friendly of course, but if there are drop outs, it's going to highlight the depth issue, not that it needs a match to highlight it.

Very true Smithers. Full on players like Bienek and Albert will inevitably be at risk of picking up knocks the way they play and Horsman has unfortunately missed quite a bit of the last two seasons. It won’t take much and we are right into the U18s or the curious reverse dual ref we seemed to have with Skolars. Neither IMHO is a recipe for success. Hope we come out guns blazing against Batley and the. Pick up,at least 3 Vhampionship hardened players.

Whilst he was bankrolling us he did as he pleased....now he's not bankrolling us, he can just ing do one.....they're lucky I'm not there for a game or I'd pay the extra to sit in his company and tell him (again) that he's destroyed the club I follow.....in some colorful Anglo Saxon terms.

Seeing as we'll all be sat opposite the Gold Lounge side of Plough Lane this season how about a nice big 'HUGHES OUT' banner to cover up some of the empty seats in the East Stand?

Nice idea, RfE, but I don't think there is a banner big enough for he myopic maestro to get the hint.