In Depth- St Helens vs London Broncos

London Broncos vs St Helens is a matchup which has been a frequent occurrence for the Broncos throughout their history. Since the Broncos’ inauguration, they have faced St Helens more than any other Rugby League team with the fixture taking place 49 times.

The first matchup took place on August 30^th, 1981 (the second year of the Broncos existence) at Knowsley Road, the home of St Helens at the time, in a matchup which finished St Helens 35- 4 Fulham RLFC in front of a crowd of 5,973. Since then, St Helens have played against all different variations of the London side, including London’s first stint as the Broncos between 1995-2006, Harlequins RL between 2006-2011 and the Broncos second stint, dated between 2011- present.

Despite the frequent occurrences of this matchup, the Broncos have so far struggled to crack St Helens’ code with the Broncos winning 8 matches, drawing 2 matches, and losing 39 matches. In this time, the Broncos have scored 823 points and conceded 1,531 points.

The fixture’s biggest attendance came on August 31^st, 2012, at St Helens as a crowd of 13,262 came to see St Helens pick up a 30-0 win over London. The Broncos biggest victory over St Helens came on March 28^th, 2002, at Griffin Park as the Broncos came away 40-6 victors.

In the most recent Broncos vs St Helens matchups, the London side have come out on top. The two most recent fixtures on the 9th of June & 21st of July (both 2019) ended in victory at the Trailfinders Sports Ground. However, going up to St Helens has always been a challenge for London, winning only three times away from home in the fixture’s history (1999, 2004 & 2007).

St Helen’s breakdown

St Helen’s was established in 1873 as St Helens football club. They have been a part of the current Super League format for all 28 seasons of its existence and have won the competition on 10 separate occasions in this time. They are the most successful team in the summer era and are looking to add to their trophy collection in 2024.

Super League Era trophies:

Super League Champions: 1996, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022.

World club challenge winners: 2001, 2007, 2023.

Challenge Cup Winners: 1996,1997,2001, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2021

League Leaders’ Shield Winners: 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2014, 2018, 2019, 2022.

ST HELENS v LONDON BRONCOS

St Helens have won their last four home meetings with London Broncos.

The capital sides' last away victory against the Saints was 27-16, as Harlequins, on 11 March, 2011 (at Widnes).

Last ten meetings:

London Broncos 32, St Helens 12 (21/7/19)

(at Trailfinders Sports Ground, Ealing)

London Broncos 23, St Helens 22 (aet) (9/6/19)

(at Trailfinders Sports Ground, Ealing)

St Helens 26, London Broncos 0 (8/3/19)

London Broncos 16, St Helens 58 (19/7/14)

(at The Hive, Barnet)

St Helens 48, London Broncos 18 (1/5/14)

St Helens 38, London Broncos 10 (9/8/13)

London Broncos 21, St Helens 14 (27/4/13)

(at Twickenham Stoop)

St Helens 30, London Broncos 0 (31/8/12)

London Broncos 24, St Helens 34 (4/2/12)

(at Twickenham Stoop)

Harlequins 16, St Helens 34 (10/9/11)

(at Twickenham Stoop)

ILIESS MACANI needs one try to reach 100 for his career.

- 62 for London Broncos (2013-2016, 2022-2023)

- 19 for London Skolars (2014, loan, 2018-2021)

- 8 for Sheffield Eagles (2018)

- 10 for Bradford Bulls (2017)