The Rabbitohs have secured their spot in the finals after claiming a scrappy 20-10 win over the North Queensland Cowboys at Accor Stadium.
At times it was intense, but the Rabbitohs were able to run in four tries to two over the second-placed northerners, ensuring they will be there in the post-season.
It wasn’t secured until the final minutes however, when a rampaging Tom Burgess showed his strength and capped off a huge game in his return match with a try under the posts to put the lead beyond reach.
The try capped a brilliant showing from the English international, where he ran for a game-high 172 metres.
Things started with the Rabbitohs controlling the early possession and territory, eventually earning a penalty to open the scoring early on.
The Cowboys earned their fair share of possession, and soon after were able to post the first try of the game to take a 6-2 lead in the ninth minute of play.
Again the tide was able to turn, and a bit of pressure was capitlaised upon by South Sydney through Keaon Koloamatangi, who burst onto a ball and ran the best part of 20m to give the home side the lead once again through 18 minutes.
Both sides struggled to maintain periods of possession through the middle stages of the first half, before back-to-back penalties gave the Rabbitohs prime field position.
That was the opportunity they needed, with the left-side coming to the fore once against in the 31st minute, with a swift backline movement involving Cameron Murray, Cody Walker and Latrell Mitchell finished off by Alex Johnston to extend the lead out to 14-6.
The Cowboys had chances over the final minutes to attack the line, but South Sydney’s defence held solid to maintain an eight-point advantage into the break.
Souths controlled the possession for most of the half with 54% of the ball, and Burgess leading the way from the interchange with 93 running metres off the bench.
It was the visitors that had the early running in the second stanza, but a dropped bomb gave the Rabbitohs another shot to attack the line.
A knock on let the Cowboys off the hook, but soon after they were able to force a line dropout to earn another set on the line, with Isaiah Tass going within inches of pushing the lead out even further.
Again both sides failed to get through their sets as dropped balls crept back into the contest, before a pair of successful challenges prevented North Queensland from further attacking the line.
Two kicks from Kyle Feldt helped the Cowboys get back into the game approaching the final 10 minutes when he scored the first try of the second half to cut the lead back to 14-10.
After defending their own line, a nasty tackle on Campbell Graham saw Coen Hess sent to the sin bin, leaving the Cowboys with 12 men for the rest of the game.
Feldt was then sent to the bin just moments later for a professional foul on Johnston, leaving it as 13 on 11 for the final three minutes.
That’s when Burgess crashed his way over from close range to seal the win and a spot in the finals.
It sets up a mouth-watering round 25 clash with their arch rivals the Sydney Roosters on Friday night for the right to host a home final.
