Loyalty Personified

If you look up the word loyalty in the dictionary, you can find a picture of John Sutton.

After re-signing for the 2019 season, the legendary second rower is poised to be a one-Club player for the South Sydney Rabbitohs.

If you needed any indication of how rare that is in the modern game, Melbourne Storm hooker Cameron Smith is the only other player in the NRL to have played 300 games at his current club - which is no small feat.

The Kensington United junior has had a rollercoaster of a career, making his debut in Round 17 of the 2004 season, at a time where the Club was still getting back on its feet after being re-admitted into the competition three years prior.

Despite offers to join other clubs in better positions both on and off the field at the time, Sutton remained loyal to the Cardinal and Myrtle, all while others around him opted out.

No matter the result, Sutton stayed on through thick and thin - and ultimately was rewarded by captaining the Club to its 21st Premiership in 2014 - the first Souths Junior to do so in over 70 years.

And of course, he became the first player in the Club's 110 year history to reach the 300-game mark earlier this year.

Having grown up in the coastal suburb of Maroubra, deep in Souths territory, it's fair to say that John Sutton more than understands South Sydney.

He is South Sydney.

You can see it in the way he plays - rarely is there a try scored where there isn't any form of an emotional reaction from the 309-game veteran. You just have to look at replays when fellow junior Cameron Murray scored the match-winning try in the Good Friday clash earlier this year to see how the Club means to him.

And those sentiments are acknowledged by Rabbitohs General Manager of Football, Shane Richardson, someone who has been at the Club and watched Sutton progress not only as a player, but as a man as well.

"John Sutton is our longest serving player, our most capped player with over 300 NRL games, and was the captain of our 2014 Premiership-winning team. To put it simply, he has earned legend status at South Sydney," he said.

"I've known John and his family for nearly 15 years now and he has grown as a leader and player on the field; and as a man, husband and father off the field in that time.

"John's experience is invaluable and he is a much loved and respected member of the team.

"We're delighted to see John in the Red and Green for another year in 2019."

'Sutto' will be going around one more time - so let's make it one hell of a year.