Leeds claim dramatic golden points win over Broncos

Leeds Rhinos (10) 17

Try: Handley, Momirovski, Martin Objectives: Martin (2) Drop goal: Croft

London Broncos (16) 16

Try: Rourke, Kennedy, Macani Objectives: Leyland (2)

Brodie Croft’s goal secured a golden point Super League win for Leeds Rhinos to deny London Broncos in dramatic fashion.

Croft’s strike proved decisive on an emotional day at Headingley, 24 hours before the funeral of Leeds legend Rob Burrow on Sunday.

Bottom side Broncos were just 10 minutes away from a first away win of the season before Rhyse Martin’s try forced extra time.

And Croft struck just four minutes into extra time to boost the hopes of Leeds’ top six.

The Broncos got off to a dream start when Josh Rourke crossed for a try in the sixth minute. He took advantage when the ball fell to him after Jacob Jones was denied and Oli Leyland converted.

The hosts responded as Leeds pair Harry Newman and Ash Handley combined well for the latter to score three minutes later, but Martin’s shot went wide.

Paul Momirovski put Leeds ahead with a try after great work from James McDonnell to make a challenge before feeding the scorer. This time, Martin made sure with his shot.

But if Leeds thought they were in control, they were in for a shock. Rhys Kennedy emerged from a tackle to score, with Leyland converting to restore London’s lead before Iliess Macani headed over in the corner for a 16-10 half-time lead.

Just before the hour, the Broncos thought they had scored again, but after a lengthy video review, Lewis Bienek was adjudged not to have dropped the ball.

Martin finally crossed just under the sticks with 10 minutes to go, to the relief of the home fans. His successful conversion then restored parity.

Lee Kershaw almost broke through late on to win it for the Broncos, but despite a strong link with Rourke, Leeds held on.

With two minutes remaining, James Meadows’ missed goal for the Broncos meant the game went into extra time, with Croft’s strike saving Leeds’ blushes.

Rhinos Interim Head Coach Chev Walker:

“I didn’t like it at all, it was a sloppy game and they (London) were more animated – if it was a game about spirit they beat us, which was really sad.

“It was about focus and we just didn’t commit enough.

“We haven’t been consistent enough and we’ve been average in most things. We’ve got to find a way to not go through that again.”

London Broncos head coach Mike Eccles:

“It definitely hurts more because of the way it happened. We were in a position to go for one (goal) but we have two young defenders who are learning their trade and this (defeat) is not on them.

“There is some regret about it because we practiced that scenario last week, but it is what it is. It’s a learning tool for us and when the emotions die down, we had some good performances there.

“It was fantastic today. We’ve been beaten by 60 points this season and we’ve put in a big effort and today we’ve been beaten by a point and you’ve got the performance to match the effort.”

Leeds Rhinos: Miller, Fusitu’a, Momirovski, Newman, Handley, Croft, Frawley, Oledzki, O’Connor, Goudemand, McDonnell, Martin, Smith

exchanges: Ackers, Lisone, Eseh, Sangare

London Broncos: Rourke, Kershaw, Bassett, Storey, Macani, Leyland, Meadows, Kennedy, Davis, Bienek, Lovell, Adebiyi, Jones

exchanges: Tison, Williams, Natoli, Stock

Referee: Marcus Griffiths