London Broncos director of rugby Mike Eccles has revealed the club will spend the full salary cap if they are in Super League in 2026 with possible marquee players arriving – but irrespective of that, they will have a 30-man, full-time squad of a high calibre.
The Broncos are waiting to discover whether or not they will be granted access to a newly-expanded top-flight next year and like a number of other Championship sides, they believe they stand a strong chance given their takeover by Darren Lockyer and Grant Wechsel.
They have already confirmed that Reagan Campbell-Gillard and Siliva Havili will play for the Broncos next year whatever division they are in, and Eccles, speaking for the first time since his new role was confirmed, has admitted almost all their recruitment will follow a similar theme.
There are exceptions, with a handful of top-end NRL players committed to London if they are in Super League. But Eccles has confirmed London will be going full-time once again next year whether they are in the Championship or Super League.
That will mean a handful of London’s squad from this year will be retained to primarily play in their reserves and step into the first-team if needed: with an almost entirely new squad set to be put together from scratch due to the significant increase in investment.
Eccles told Love Rugby League: “We’re going full-time and we were part-time last year. We’re not doing a hybrid model; we will absolutely be keeping three of our outstanding players in the reserves that will be available for first-team selection.
“They’re established and outstanding players we’re desperate to keep hold of and in the process of doing exactly that.
“But there will be a strong squad of around 27 to 30 full-time players. We will be spending the cap, we will be exploring marquee options and there’s certainly a high turnover incoming: but there will be some familiar faces too.”
Eccles hinted that a number of players who were in London’s squad in 2024 in Super League will also return to the fray – and admits he and new head coach Jason Demetriou have worked in tandem on both sides of the world to ensure their recruitment is as worldwide and extensive as possible.
“He’s a fantastic coach,” Eccles said of Demetriou.
“The thing which excites me about JD is the bloke played for Chorley Lynx, which sounds ridiculous. He played at Wakefield and with the resource he had, he also coached at Keighley, these things are invaluable in him succeeding as an Australian coach.
“I don’t need to harp on at him about this country and the way it is over here. I’m excited to see what he brings from his NRL experience; he’s got a great understanding of the game over here. I can give him some detail about the players over here too. He’s headed up the overseas recruitment and I’ve handled this side of the world.”
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