London Broncos beat Toulouse Olympique in the Championship Grand Final by 18-14, the London club willl return to the Super League for the first time since 2019; watch every Super League game on Sky Sports for the next three years
Sunday 15 October 2023 18:10, UK
Two second-half tries from Ilies Macani lifted London Broncos back into the Betfred Super League for the first time in four years with an 18-14 win in their Championship play-off final in Toulouse.
Mike Eccles' men looked down and out after falling 10 points behind at the interval, but embarked on a stirring comeback before withstanding some serious late pressure to keep the the French side - unbeaten at home all season - at
bay.
Their victory sealed a remarkable revival for a club that lost four of their first five games of the regular season before clawing their way into the play-offs and sinking league leaders Featherstone in last week's semi-final.
A London win had looked wholly improbable after a clumsy first period in which the hosts clearly had the edge from the moment they snatched the opener through Mathieu Jussaume with just three minutes on the clock.
Jake Shorrocks kicked the conversion and the hosts continued to put London under the cosh, with the excellent Josh Ralph almost sending winger Guy Armitage clear only for play to be pulled back for a forward pass.
Lacking intensity and focus, London's prospects looked even more grim just past the quarter-hour mark when Zac Santo surged clear on the left and gifted Ralph the chance to go over on the inside.
But Eccles' men rallied and Dean Whare latched onto a clever kick in-goal by Corey Norman to finally get his side on the scoresheet.
Norman missed the conversion and a panicked pass by Wellington Albert summed up the visitors' sluggishness before Shorrocks kicked his third goal to lift his side 10 points clear at the break.
But London looked a different team after the restart, Oliver Leyland coming close under the posts before their pressure finally told when Norman sent Scotland international Alex Walker over in the corner to reduce the deficit to
14-8.
A brilliant ball from Norman sent Macani over for his opener on 62, and six minutes later the visitors grabbed the lead for the first time when the fast hands of Jack Walker gifted Macani another walk-in on the left.
Norman's first conversion extended London's lead to four and a sterling defensive effort in the dying stages, with Lambert Belmas held up over the line, ensured Toulouse would end up scoreless in the second period.
The final hooter confirmed a London play-off triumph every bit as impressive as their shock win at Toronto Wolfpack in 2018, and secured their place back in the big time for the start of the sport's much-vaunted new IMG era.
Watch every Super League match for the next three years on Sky Sports.
