Kevin Impey on two former Crown Woods schoolboys who have graduated to the very top form of rugby league

FOUR years ago they were studious school-mates. But now they are mates of a different kind, club-mates in fact, with the London Broncos Rugby League Club.

Former Crown Woods schoolboys Olu Iwenofu and Yusuf Sozi are proof the Broncos' aggressive community development programme is paying dividends.

And their rise through the ranks from Broncos' Academy to first-team status has been rewarded with them both signing

professional contracts at the age of 19.

Olu, who was born in Lambeth, is a very speedy winger and he had the thrill of making his first-team debut when coming on as a substitute against Super League champions elect St Helens last September. Ironically, the Saints are the Broncos' next Super League opponents at The Valley on Saturday week.

He impressed so much that Olu retained his place for the game the following week at Leeds, a match which also marked the debut of Yusuf, a powerful front-rower, and both played major parts in the Broncos'

unexpected end-of-season win.

Olu and Yusuf first became interested in rugby league in 1996 when the Broncos, in their previous spell based at The Valley,

attended Crown Woods School on a promotional visit.

The Broncos relocated to west London, but last year the club returned to Charlton and put down solid roots in the community with a long-term vision for growth and

development of the game.

It was the current Broncos coach Tony Rea, then a player, who encouraged Olu and Yusuf to take up the game, and for the next three years the youngsters travelled to west London to continue learning the game as part of the Broncos' emerging academy side.

When Olu ran out onto The Valley pitch for the final home game of last season, he became the first south-east Londoner to have progressed right through the full Academy programme to the top grade.

A week later, Yusuf became the second against Leeds Rhinos. Yusuf, who was originally from Uganda and plays by the motto of “no retreat”, was also voted Broncos'

Alliance Player of the Year last season.

Meanwhile, the Broncos' work in the community has continued where they left off last season and their schools coaching programme has seen a dramatic boost at the start of the new Super League season.

All 28 full-time players in the Broncos' professional squad, including Olu and Yusuf, are coaching every week and the programme currently serves 60 primary and 20 secondary schools in the Greenwich, Lewisham and Bexley boroughs.

Broncos development officer Phil Jones said: “We are finding plenty of talented youngsters in the schools at the moment and many of them have fantastic athletic ability. Not a lot of them know a great deal about rugby league, but that is rapidly changing.

“Being a minority sport in the south of England it is crucial that we, as a club, continue to unearth exciting, local young prospects like Olu and Yusuf.”

If you want to see the Broncos in action against the World Club Champions, St Helens, on Saturday week at The Valley, tickets priced £8 for adults and £2 for children can be pre-booked by calling 020 8853 8815.