The South Sydney Rabbitohs got back into their groove with a 24-12 victory over the St George Illawarra Dragons. This is what we learnt from the round five clash.
COOKIE AT HIS ELECTRIFYING BEST
Damien Cook was in scintillating form around the ruck, probing and asking questions of the Dragons defence. He led the game in dummy half metres by constantly getting out of hooker and trying to catch the Dragons off guard regularly throughout the game. His finest moment came in the sixth minute of play, busting the Dragons line open to lead to Latrell Mitchell getting South Sydney on the board early.
OUTSIDE BACKS GET THE TEAM ROLLING
The go forward of the outside backs was crucial to getting out of danger and onto the front foot. A massive combined total of 566 metres from the back four showed how willing they were to get in and take the tough carries.
Campbell Graham and Taane Milne were rewarded with second half tries, with the latter helping to seal the win.
BENCH LEADS THE TEAM FORWARD
Blake Taafe came into the game earlier than expected with the injury to Latrell Mitchell, but the interchange unit as a whole was able to pick up where the starting 13 left off. Jacob Host, Davvy Moale and Liam Knight combined for a massive 313m off the bench and only missed one tackle between them in 117 minutes of action.
They added some crucial minutes throughout the second half.
CAPTAIN'S KNOCK FROM CAM
Cam Murray was as strong as ever, getting through 11 hit ups and making 37 tackles, second only behind Damien Cook for the game.
The captain forced a number of mistakes from the opposition and was instrumental once again in helping the Rabbitohs get on the front foot.
OFFLOADS LEAD TO POINTS
Second phase play was the friend of the Rabbitohs, with 11 offloads adding to the offensive punch of the side. There was none better than Keaon Koloamatangi in the 51st minute, breaking through the line to keep the ball rolling for Campbell Graham to cross.
