Henderson wants Broncos brand to be attacking

London Broncos coach Andrew Henderson is hoping that his team can play an entertaining style of rugby this season in the Championship.

But he accepts that he may have to adapt his team’s style to the weather conditions early on in the campaign, which starts with a trip to face Oldham.

“I want to play an attacking brand of rugby league,” he told Love Rugby League.

“And you can play that on the surface we’ve got in training, because it’s all-weather.

“On heavy pitches, much as it pains me, you’ve got to play boring football.

“I expect a wet day, a heavy day, and a tough contest [at Oldham].

“We’ve got to battle hard. We’re not the biggest side, if I’m being honest.

“We’re a mobile team, which is why I think we’ll see the best of this team in the dry months.

“We’ve got to be able to come through these early rounds and adapt our style of play accordingly to pick up points.”

Henderson does believe that a Championship team can play an entertaining style at their level, though, and still enjoy success.

“I do, yes,” he said.

“When you play an attacking brand of football, the reality is that you’ve got to be able to back it up defensively, because you’re going to make mistakes.

“You’re going to make more mistakes than the team which just plays five drives and a kick.

“That’s where you’ve got to be smart. If your team hasn’t got the defensive edge that it needs, then you probably have to play more of a conservative game.

“I’m still learning about my team. I’ve made some off-season recruits, I’ve retained some from last year.

“I’ve got to get to know more about my team in the coming weeks. If I have to rein them back in, I’ll rein them in accordingly.

“But, hopefully, we’ll be able to see the brand of football I want to play.

“We’ve certainly got the skill within the team to be able to do that.

“But we still have massive areas of improvement, too.

“You don’t win anything in February. It’s a long season.”

Meanwhile, Henderson is delighted that the Broncos now have a base at Ealing Trailfinders RUFC, a place which offers a more joined-up experience for staff and players at the club.

“The big thing for me last year was that the club felt disconnected and disjointed,” he said.

“We had our academy and scholarship guys training at the other end of south London, and we’re based in the north of London.

“They’re playing out of Aldershot, Hemel, we’re playing out of Edgeware, it was just all over.

“We’ve come to the Trailfinders, and not only does it give the opportunity for the younger grades to come there and be part of the club as we start to build something, but also, from a first-team point of view, to train there and play there.

“Everything’s on one site, so we never have to go off-site and travel.

“We’ve got the grass pitch there, we’ve got the artificial pitch there, we’ve got the gym, physio rooms, meeting rooms, all on the one site. It’s a fantastic facility.

“A few people might say that it’s not Super League standard in terms of a stadium facility, but the club has got plans to extend the seating capacity, if we do go up to Super League in the future.”