Following a change in the Rugby Football League’s (RFL) format, London Skolars will make the trip to just 10 teams in the 2019 Betfred League 1 campaign instead of 13. Over the course of the regular season, they will travel a total 4,388 miles to and from various venues across the country, an average of 399 miles per away game.
York City Knights and Bradford Bulls earned promotion to the Betfred Championship, meaning those are two journeys the Skolars can cross off the list for 2019. Meanwhile, Workington’s loss to Swinton Lions in the play off final means London will be making the trip to Town’s Derwent Park again next year. Hemel Stags agreed to withdraw from the 2019 Betfred League 1 following a challenging 2018 season.
The Skolars’ longest journey in 2019 will be to Whitehaven’s Recreation Ground in West Cumbria, which is 331 miles away (662-mile round trip) from New River Stadium. Skolars made that trip twice in 2018, once in the Challenge Cup and once in League 1, but came up short on both occasions, losing 16-14 and 28-18 respectively.
The shortest distance the team will travel in 2019 is to Coventry Bears. The Bears’ Butts Park Arena which holds around 4,000 fans, is 94 miles away from Skolars. Last season’s meeting between the sides in Hertfordshire ended in a 28-20 win for London.
Other away days on the longer side include trips to Workington Town (650-mile round trip), Newcastle Thunder (568-mile round trip) and Keighley Cougars (420-mile round trip). Meanwhile, away games at Doncaster (338-mile round trip) North Wales Crusaders (360-mile round trip) and Hunslet RLFC (382-mile round trip) represent the shorter journeys.
A full breakdown of London Skolars’ away trips in 2019 is below.
Opponent (Furthest – Closest) | Distance | Round Trip | 2018 Result |
Whitehaven RLFC | 331 | 662 | 14-16* (L), 18-28 (L) |
Workington Town | 325 | 650 | 6-38 (L) |
Newcastle Thunder | 284 | 568 | 14-46 (L) |
Keighley Cougars | 210 | 420 | 18-26 (L) |
West Wales Raiders | 207 | 414 | 62-12 (W) |
Oldham RLFC | 203 | 406 | 12-44 (L) |
Hunslet RLFC | 191 | 382 | 12-48 (L) |
North Wales Crusaders | 180 | 360 | 24-24 (D) |
Doncaster RLFC | 169 | 338 | 6-38 (L) |
Coventry Bears | 94 | 188 | 28-20 (W) |
Total | 2,194 | 4,388 | |
Average | 199 | 399 |
*Challenge Cup fixture
Fans are reminded that Skolars’ 2019 season gets underway with the Capital Challenge match against 2018 Super League Grand Final champions Wigan Warriors at the Honourable Artillery Company (HAC) ground in central London on Friday 18th January 2019. For tickets click here.
2019 Season Memberships are still available to purchase. Benefits include a free ticket to the 2019 Challenge Cup Final (worth 35 pounds) as well as a discount in the official club store. London Broncos season ticket holders are reminded they also get a discount. To buy your 2019 Season Membership click here.