PERTH Bears signing Luke Smith scored the sort of try second rowers fantasise about as London Broncos finished with a wet sail at a damp Plough Lane against Doncaster.
Kicking off their play-offs campaign, the Broncos were leading 26-6 on the hour when the 23-year-old former Canterbury player took a hit-up 10 metres on his own side of halfway.
He promptly beat three opposition forwards with a strength and brute strenth before swerving around the cover defence like a thoroughbred outside back.
The Broncos ended up winning comfortably, 42-6.
At the end of a year in which walkovers were commonplace, London had a game on their hands in the first half, leading just 14-6 at halftime and well into the second session.
A heady flick pass from Brandon Webster-Mansfield put winger Neil Tchambambe over in the right corner in the 17th minute.
But Richard Horne’s Dons were made of sterner stuff than many other visitors to Plough Lane this year, second rower Luis Johnson making a long break midway through the half.
The next points did, however, come from the Broncos. Five-eight Gairo Voro thew a dummy 20 metes out and glided through a gap at 27 minutes.
Finley Glare lost the ball with the line open on the half hour but Tchamambe made not mistake as he scored again without a hand laid on him not long afterwards.
The Broncos bombed another certain try before Webster-Mansfield was penalised for a late shot on Tom Holmes in the shadows of halftime.
The Dons needed no further invitation with Watson Boas scoring and Connor Robinson scored his 53rd consecutive goal.
After Smith’s heroics, Voro (65 minutes) and forward Epel Kapinias (73) added their names to the score sheet.
The tries at the start of the first half came from replacement Connor O’Beirne (59 minutes) and and centre Robert Mathias (58).
Holmes got an early shower when sent to the sin bin for a high shot on Gairo Voro in the 78th minute.
LONDON 42 (Tchamambe 2 Voro 2 O’Bierne Mathias Smith Kapinias tries Hawkins 5Â goals) beat DONCASTER 6 (Boas try Robinson goal at Cherry Red Records Stadium
Teams:
LONDON: Alex Walker; Neil Tchamambe, Brandon Webster-Mansfield, Robert Mathias, Elliot Wallis; Gairo Voro, Dean Hawkins; Reagan Campbell-Gillard (c), Siliva Havili, Epel Kapinias, Luke Smith, Jack Croft, Sadiq Adebiyi. Res: Finley Glare, Connor O’Beirne, Lewis Bienik, Emarly Butungane.
DONCASTER: Tom Holmes; Bureta Faraimo, Reece Lyne, Watson Boas, Edene Gebbie; Cory Aston, Connor Robinson; Brad Knowles, Connor Jones, Suaia Matagi, Alex Suitcliffe, Luis Johnson, Jacob Jones. Res: Muizz Mustapha, Isaac Misky, Tyla Hepi, Tom Whitehead.
Referee: James Vella.
