Round Rewind: Rabbitohs Rally Late to Steal ANZAC Round Win against the Panthers

With our first home game against the Penrith Panthers on the horizon, we rewind to Round 8 of the 2023 season when the Rabbitohs pulled off one of their most memorable wins in recent years.

In a Thursday night thriller at Accor Stadium, South Sydney came from behind to stun the defending premiers with two tries in the final five minutes, snatching a 20-18 victory and lighting up ANZAC Round.

The Match

The game remained scoreless for the opening 20 minutes, however a few moments of flair from Latrell Mitchell saw the Rabbitohs spark an attacking set which placed them on the Panthers line. The Rabbitohs opened the scoring through Damien Cook, who darted out of dummy half and spun out of the grips of Moses Leota and Matthew Eisenhuth to score under the posts. Mitchell converted to make it 6-0.

The Panthers struck just before halftime through Stephen Crichton, who bagged all 18 of Penrith’s points on the night. Crichton’s conversion levelled the scores at the break, and a penalty goal early in the second half nudged the visitors ahead.

A perfectly executed scrum play ignited the Rabbitohs’ left edge, with Cody Walker firing a swift cutout ball to a rampaging Latrell Mitchell. Mitchell found himself through the Penrith defensive line, brushing aside three Penrith defenders and barnstorming over the line to reclaim the lead at 10-8.

Despite the momentum shift, Penrith managed to hit back with two quick tries, as Stephen Crichton capitalised on some sharp lead-up play and later completed his hat-trick off a Cleary bomb, pushing the Panthers out to an 18-10 lead with under 10 minutes to play.

With the match seemingly slipping away and the Panthers in control, the Rabbitohs needed something special to turn the tide. In the 75th minute, Lachlan Ilias launched a towering bomb and Latrell Mitchell was there to capitalise, pouncing for his second try of the night. With the score narrowed to 18-16, the stage was set for one final, dramatic push.

With under two minutes left on the clock, South Sydney rolled the dice one last time, shifting the ball to the left. Alex Johnston drew in two defenders and magically freed his right arm to release a pass to Cody Walker. Sensing an opportunity, Walker sliced through the line and surged into open space before being ankle-tapped in a desperate last-ditch effort. Stumbling but composed, Walker managed to offload to Isaiah Tass, who sprinted away and dived over to snatch the lead, sealing a famous 20-18 victory for the cardinal and myrtle.

The thrilling last-gasp win marked South Sydney’s first triumph over the Panthers at Accor Stadium since 2017 and extended their winning streak to four games in the 2023 season.

Key Performers

• Latrell Mitchell – 2 tries, 12 points, 109 run metres, 12 tackle breaks
• Isaiah Tass – 1 try (match-winner), 162 run metres, 31 post-contact metres
• Jai Arrow – 113 run metres, 42 post-contact metres, 38 tackles made
• Cody Walker – 2 try assists, 1 line break, 1 line break assist