LONDON BRONCOS head coach Colin Baker praised the resilience and defensive steel that finally carried his side into the Women’s Super League, ending two years of heartache with promotion at the third attempt.
The capital side systematically dismantled their post-season competition, putting together a clinical run through the play-offs to seal top-flight status.
Reflecting on the campaign’s defining stretch, Baker pointed to the escalating intensity required to sweep aside their biggest rivals when everything was on the line.
“I thought we played really well against Cardiff at home,” Baker said. “Then we had to step it up again against Swinton. They’d beaten us earlier in the season, convincingly.”
That championship-winning surge was anchored by a ruthless defensive line. Baker revealed that defensive commitment served as the true barometer for the squad’s culture and togetherness throughout 2024.
“Yeah, it’s something we work very, very hard on, and it’s a good sort of barometer for us of how we are as a group,” Baker explained.
“We have worked really, really hard on it. We see it as part of the connectivity of the group and they’ve bought into it. At the end of the day, we can put out there whatever we want coaching-wise, but if the players are not buying into it, you’re going to struggle.”
That buy-in paid ultimate dividends on the big stage, complemented by dynamic individual performances across the park.
Hermione Titcomb produced a player-of-the-match display to write the headlines, drawing special praise from her coach for a astonishing debut campaign in Rugby League.
“She’s come in as a brand-new player… I’m not sure I’ve known a player just come in and adapt to it so quickly as she has. She just really has picked it up,” Baker added.
“Player of the match last week in the (Championship) Grand Final, she’s been outstanding all season.”