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Seven Tackle Set - 7 talking points from R15

After an early scare, the South Sydney Rabbitohs managed to pile on the points against the Parramatta Eels in their Round 15 match at ANZ Stadium on Thursday night. 

Check out the seven biggest talking points from the comprehensive 42-24 victory.

 

1. Turning the Tide

It wasn't an ideal start for the Rabbitohs as the Eels managed to score the first try early on and then build a 14-6 advantage midway through the first half.

But again, the resilience and level-headed Souths side didn't panic and got back to business, clawing their way back to a 16-14 half-time lead and then running away with the match.

A team that can change the momentum of a match is one that becomes formidable at the back end of the year.

 

2. Sticky Fingers

A much-improved performance handling wise, and the results showed.

The Red and Greens went from 16 errors last week to just five on Thursday night, which produced eight tries as opposed to just three against the Titans.

At half-time, the Rabbitohs' completion rate sat at 80% and then improved through the second half to 89%, which is a phenomenal statistic. The side also turned around 41% possession at halftime to 54% at fulltime. 

 

3. Family Tries

The highly anticipated Jennings' family clash lived up to the hype, with youngest brother Robert coming up against his brothers Michael and George.

While George bagged a double for the Eels, it was Robert who crashed Michael's 250th game celebrations, scoring four tries, his highest tally in a single game.

He became the first player to score four this year, and brought his season tally to 12, and proving himself to be one of the best finishers in the NRL in the process. 

 

4. Half Hour of Fury

Between the 32nd and 64th minute, the Rabbitohs' attack went into fifth gear, laying on seven tries.

You read that right, seven tries in half an hour – that's a four-pointer every four and a half minutes.

The victory over the Eels saw the side post the most tries in a game this season and equalled the 42 points scored against the Raiders in Round 7.

Currently, Souths have scored the most points and tries in the competition, with a differential of 121, which will be very handy come to the business end of the year.

 

5. Line Breakers

Going into the match the Rabbitohs averaged a whopping 5.9 line breaks per game - the most in the league - and they continued their form with eight line breaks against the feeble Eels defence.

The left side absolutely terrorised Parramatta, who had no answers, which was evidenced by Jennings' four tries, with the right side coming up with some pearlers including Alex Johnston slicing through and Hymel Hunt touching down in the corner. 

 

6. Bombs Away

One thing that got the Rabbitohs rolling was the towering, spiralling bombs, courtesy of the boot of one Adam Reynolds.

Reyno's boot was on song all night, barring a few missed conversions, and the looping kicks terrorised the Eels all night. If they didn't help lay on tries, his kicks certainly gave the side good field position, which laid the platform for the eight-try performance.

It's refreshing to see so many questions being thrown at the opposition wingers, along with some great kick-chase to back it up.

 

7. Trick Shots Galore

Once again the Rabbitohs gave themselves the label as entertainers as they scored some absolute scorches.

The first two tries of the night came off scrum plays, which were executed perfectly to give Robert Jennings the first of his two tries, and then Cody Walker used his vision to chip over the defence to send Alex Johnston through for the lead.

AJ went in for another as a beautifully timed Angus Crichton pass saw him fly through the line, while more perfected set plays put Jennings in for his third and fourth tries.

Hymel Hunt dived over after a quick set of hands on the right side, and finally, Tom Burgess barged over in the 64th minute from a play that included a kick and a regather.

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