London Broncos rugby league hopes buoyed by Brisbane icon Darren Lockyer and players from PNG

The London Broncos might be the only rugby league club in Britain to have experienced relegation before a season even began.

For lifelong fan Gavin Willacy, the pain was bittersweet.

He'd just watched his team of part-time players earn promotion to the top-tier English Super League, only for the sport's new grading system to deem the club commercially unviable prior to the 2024 season.

"It meant we would get relegated out of Super League before it even started, so we started the season knowing it was an eight-month adventure," he said.

It was another setback for Willacy, who had already witnessed multiple demotions, failed ownerships, player departures and financial shortfalls in his 25 years as a fan.

But now he's feeling hopeful.

In September Brisbane Broncos icon Darren Lockyer and his business partner Grant Wechsel bought a 90 per cent stake in the London Broncos.

They hope to haul the capital's team out of the second-tier Championship competition and back to the Super League.

The plan has shades of actor Ryan Reynolds's fairy-tale promotion run with Welsh soccer club Wrexham FC — except Lockyer's venture includes Papua New Guinea national coach Jason Demetriou and several PNG representative players who've been recruited to lift the club out of obscurity.

Playing in the shadows

Gavin Willacy is a sportswriter by trade and has watched more than a few sports falter in a London market ruled by professional soccer.

Yet it's always seduced rugby league powerbrokers, with Brisbane Broncos founder Barry Maranta and billionaire Richard Branson among past owners who've attempted to buy the Broncos a place in the city's sporting consciousness.

None succeeded.

"If you were to substitute professional soccer with what Melbourne has with the AFL, that's how tough it is," Willacy said.

Despite the cultural challenges, the Broncos still managed 19 years in the Super League between 1996 and 2015 before being relegated after eight straight bottom four finishes.

They clawed their way back up in 2019 and again in 2023, but both times fell back down.

"People don't realise what a tiny operation the club has been," Willacy said.

"The infrastructure is smaller than a Queensland Cup team and the crowd base has shrunk to three figures."

Enter Darren Lockyer

Like the owners who came before him, Lockyer was enticed by the potential of the London market — not to mention the Broncos name he's synonymous with.

Lockyer also took inspiration from American actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac turning Wrexham FC into a household name after purchasing the club in 2020.

He mightn't have the same global reach as the actors, but his purchase comes with an advantage Wrexham didn't have — a stadium in the heart of the famous sporting suburb of Wimbledon, shared with the AFC Wimbledon soccer club.

Meanwhile Lockyer's NRL connections allowed him to hire Demetriou, who in turn has recruited a slew of PNG players who played under him in the Pacific Championship last month.

"Jason has worked with these guys, got to know them and he's worked in Super League as a player and coach, so he knows what's required," Lockyer told the ABC.

Of the PNG players recruited, virtually all played for the PNG Hunters, the country's professional team, in the Queensland Cup last year.

Two others, including former NRL player Nene MacDonald, are expected to sign in the coming days.

If they succeed, there's a lot to be gained.

A promotion to the Super League would make an ideal stepping stone for PNG's new NRL franchise, the Chiefs, who will enter the Australian competition in 2028.

It also allows Lockyer's Broncos to tap into a new audience of viewers in PNG's rugby league-mad market — a luxury no owner before him has had access to.

"We are in the process at the moment to ensure we can get the games streamed back into PNG so they can watch their journey," Lockyer said.

But success is not guaranteed.

From Port Moresby to London

The high-profile nature of Lockyer's purchase is likely to put the Broncos in the crosshairs of opposition clubs.

And even if they win the premiership, the new Super League grading system dictates that commercial standards to do with finances, fan engagement and sponsorship must be met before promotion can be granted.

Even Lockyer concedes he still hasn't quite got his head around the prerequisites.

It could also take time for the PNG players to adjust to London's lifestyle, which is vastly different from Port Moresby's.

However, Demetriou is confident they are up to it.

"They couldn't have said 'yes' fast enough. They have jumped at the opportunity to play here and test themselves and do things that many in PNG people don't get to do," he said.

Luckily, the Broncos have history on their side.

Rugby league journalist and historian Patrick Skene said the UK has served as a home away from home for PNG players in the past.

"The English have a much higher respect for PNG players," he said.

"There's been 50 who have played across France and English divisions since 1983 and outposts like Hull have at times had multiple PNG players."

The verdict

Willacy, the London Broncos fan, is slightly less bullish.

He said for every PNG success story such as Edwin Ipape, who has flourished at the Leigh Leopards in recent years, there's just as many who struggle.

The Castleford Tigers, for example, have signed multiple PNG players in the last couple of years and only one of them, Liam Horne, was able to secure a permanent game.

"We know there are brilliant players out there but we also know not all will cope with the change," Willacy said.

But as a lifelong Broncos supporter, he couldn't be happier with the direction his club is taking.

After watching fan attendance dwindle to less than 500 people in recent years, he's confident Lockyer's gamble will bring fans back to the club.