London seek ‘momentum’ boost in 1895 Cup final as trophy admission made
London Broncos head coach Jason Demetriou
London Broncos head coach Jason Demetriou believes winning the 1895 Cup would provide a momentum boost in every sense as the club continue to push for a Super League return.
Having won 22 of their 23 games in the second tier so far this season, last weekend saw London officially wrap up the Championship League Leaders’ Shield.
The only blot on the Broncos’ copy book so far in the league in 2026 came a few weeks ago away against Oldham, and come Monday afternoon (August 31), they will have the chance to add more silverware to their cabinet.
Widnes Vikings are their opponents in the final of the 1895 Cup, which takes place at the Halliwell Jones Stadium in Warrington.
Unlike previous years, there are no IMG points up for grabs for winning the competition this season – but Demetriou and his side are determined to get the job done nonetheless.
‘We’ve done well to reach the final, but it’ll mean nothing if we don’t lift the trophy’
With one last league game still to come against lowly Swinton Lions before the Championship play-offs come around, ‘momentum’ is the buzz word for the capital club as they gear up for Monday afternoon’s cup final.
Head coach Demetriou was appointed ahead of the 2026 campaign and is no stranger to silverware having scooped numerous honours Down Under at second-grade level as a head coach as well as forming part of the North Queensland Cowboys backroom team as they won the NRL Grand Final in 2015.
Speaking to the media earlier this week, the 50-year-old said: “To gain momentum down here in London, the one thing we have to do is be consistently successful.
“To do that, you’ve got to be in the top echelons of the sides and you’ve got to win trophies.
“That’s something we haven’t been able to do as a club for a consistent period of time, and if we want to change that, we have to go after these types of competitions.
“We’ve done well to reach the final, but it’ll mean nothing if we don’t lift the trophy on Monday.
“For us to gain momentum in the South, it’s vital (to win things), but also for us to gain momentum as a team with on-field performances.
“Leigh and Wakefield and Hull KR before that, you look how successful they were (in the Championship) and how that transitioned from on-field success into Super League.”
‘Winning is a habit, and you need to believe in that’
Having topped the Championship, London will get a bye into week two of the play-offs: where they will have a home tie at Plough Lane with a fallback of a sudden death play-off the week after if they were to suffer a shock defeat at the first hurdle.
Accordingly, they would have to lose two weeks running to be knocked out – an occurrence which seems nigh on impossible given their form throughout the campaign.
Demetriou continued: “Winning is a habit, and you need to believe in that.
“You need to drive certain standards to be consistent in that all year, and the boys have done a pretty good job of that.
“I’ve spoken about it a bit to the playing group in terms of building a culture of success.
“We’ve got the League Leaders’ Shield and that trophy is in the bag as a result of all the work we’ve done this year.
“But it means nothing come the 80 minutes on Monday and it will mean nothing come the finals series (play-offs).”
