The South Sydney Rabbitohs have defeated the Parramatta Eels on a wet night at Commbank Stadium to extend their winning run to five in a row.
There were many strong contributors for the Rabbitohs, with Jack Wighton and Jacob Gagai both crossing for doubles. However, Latrell Mitchell was undoubtedly the star of the show, finishing the game with a try, two assists, three line-break assists and a line-break.
Mitchell was also lethal with the boot, launching towering bombs all night that will give the Parramatta back three nightmares for weeks to come, as well as kicking four conversions from six attempts.
South Sydney managed to score the first try of the game in the eighth minute through right winger Jacob Gagai.
A knock on by Bryce Cartwright in attempting to diffuse a Jack Wighton grubber kick gifted the Rabbitohs a full set deep in the attacking zone.
They would capitalise from the ensuing scrum, with Latrell Mitchell wrapping round to the right to create the overlap, before throwing the final pass to an unmarked Gagai to score in the corner.
The Rabbitohs’ next try would come in the 32nd minute, with a timely offload from Taane Milne in the middle of the field sparking the move that led to the try.
Off the back of the Milne offload, the ball found its way to Gagai on the wing, who was once again unmarked. Gagai then raced away down the touchline, before linking up with Wighton in support, who finished off the move by planting the ball down next to the posts for an 8-0 lead.
The Parramatta Eels would land their first shot of the game in the 35th minute, with Blaize Talagi crossing on the right side of the field.
However, it was the Red and Green who would have the last laugh of the half, with Cody Walker catching a couple of Parramatta defenders off guard as he sliced through from close range, sending South Sydney to the break ahead 16-4.
Parramatta were quick to show that they weren’t out of the contest, with Brendan Hands putting Reagan Campbell-Gillard through a gap close to the line to score in the 50th minute.
South Sydney were just as quick to reassert their dominance though, with superstar fullback Mitchell using the wet conditions to his advantage, sliding over the line to score in the 56th minute of the game.
Jacob Gagai then crossed for his second of the night in the 68th minute, to seemingly put the result out of reach for Parramatta.
The Eels would score a late try in the 72nd minute, through Bryce Cartwright who pounced on a Gutherson grubber to make things somewhat interesting for the final eight minutes.
However, the Rabbitohs were able to steady the ship and grind out the victory, with Wighton scoring his second of the game to put the final nail in Parramatta’s coffin, sealing the result for the Rabbitohs 32 points to 16.
Match Snapshot
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Jacob Gagai opened the scoring for South Sydney, crossing in the right-hand corner off a scrum play in the attacking zone.
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Jack Wighton was next to score for the Rabbitohs, supporting on the inside to finish off a great run from Gagai, who threw a great inside ball to Wighton to score untouched.
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Blaize Talagi got the Parramatta Eels on the board, finishing off a length-of-the-field passage of play that he began with a line-break from his own end of the field.
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Cody Walker scored on the stroke of half-time to give the Rabbitohs a 16-4 lead at half-time.
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The Eels drew first blood in the second half, with front-rower Reagan Campbell-Gillard barging over from close range.
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The Rabbitohs hit back six minutes later through Latrell Mitchell, who slid over from close range off the back of a nice backline move.
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Jacob Gagai scored his second try of the game in the 68th minute to put the result seemingly beyond doubt.
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Parramatta managed a consolation try in the 72nd minute after Bryce Cartwright capitalised on a Clint Gutherson grubber kick.
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Jack Wighton sealed the result for South Sydney, crossing in the 76th minute after several Parramatta defenders slipped over trying to stop him.
Play of the Game
Tonight’s play of the game goes to the Rabbitohs’ second try of the match to Jack Wighton. A mid-field offload from Taane Milne off a regulation hit up would spark the move that saw Souths go 60m to score. The ball from Milne found Damien Cook, who quickly shifted the ball to Keaon Koloamatangi on the right edge. Kloamatangi drew in the Eels defenders before releasing the ball to Michael Chee Kam, who would pass to an unmarked Jacob Gagai on the wing. From there it was a simple foot race, with Gagai proving too quick for the Eels defenders to handle. As he met Clint Gutherson at the back, Gagai threw a beautiful right-to-left pass to Jack Wighton – supporting through the middle as any good five-eighth should – who only had to run 20m to finish off the exciting move and score.
What’s Next?
A trip north next Thursday night to take on the Dolphins. South Sydney will be hoping for clear skies and some dry-weather football as they leave Sydney’s wet winter weather behind them in their first ever match at Kayo Stadium in Redcliffe.
