Round 6 Panthers v Rabbits

[TITAN PETE]

Panthers v Rabbitohs preview
By Matt Encarnacion, Western Sydney Correspondent
NRL.com
11:00am Wed 09th April, 2014


Panthers v Rabbitohs
Sportingbet Stadium
Friday, 7.30pm (AEST)

In a world where the sun rises in the east and the toilet water rotates clockwise, fourth meeting 12th would be as straightforward an outcome as they come.

Only problem is,the NRL has taken up residence on a wacky planet where perennial underachievers Penrith are your fourth-placed team and competition heavyweights South Sydney sit closer to last than first. Let us put it another way: If the semi-finals started on Friday, the Panthers would be hosting one, while the only thing the Rabbitohs would be hosting is a barbeque.

But alas, there's a reason why they say premierships aren't won in March (or April, for that matter). The next 21 weeks is about sorting out the contenders from the pretenders – it just might take a little longer than usual this season.

Penrith bounced back from an embarrassing loss to Parramatta with an insipid 12-6 win over the Raiders in soggy conditions last Saturday evening. The only notable differences between the two teams was what is looking more and more like a State of Origin-calibre Jamie Soward and an exuberant debutant in two-try hero Dallin Watene-Zelezniak.

Soward produced a signature flawless kicking and passing display to keep his side on the front foot for most of the game, while rookie winger DWZ overcame a nervous start to show why many consider him in the athletic ilk of Israel Folau.

Meanwhile, South Sydney finally found their mojo against their old foes in St George-Illawarra, bashing their way to a 26-6 victory and ending a worrying three-game slide that included losses to Canberra and the Wests Tigers. The Rabbitohs made full use of a 7-1 penalty count in the first half to set up a 14-0 first half lead that rendered a tired Dragons outfit helpless in the second.

But does it mean they're back? Have they finally put the Sam Burgess drama behind them? Did Maguire err in moving John Sutton out of the halves and has his return set them back on track? Or, do they succumb to a Panthers side hoping to show that they're more than a flashy new set of wheels?

That last question we find out the answer to on Friday night. As for the rest, we've got another 20 weeks to wait.


Watch Out Panthers: The Souths trio of Burgess brothers – twin Tom is expected back from a foot injury in Round 8 – amassed more than 402 metres between them against the Dragons. Add in Greg Inglis' 205m gain and that's almost half the 1392m the entire team recorded that night.

It's no secret that South Sydney's strength lies in their bevy of man-monsters in the middle of the field. Knowing that is one thing, stopping them is another. Good luck.

Watch Out Rabbitohs: Jamie Soward is happy, and when Jamie Soward is happy, Jamie Soward is in good form. And when Jamie Soward is in good form... Alright, alright. An Origin return might be unlikely but that should only benefit a Panthers side who has found a fluency in their attack with Peter Wallace (two try assists), Soward (four) and a sweeping Matt Moylan (five) showing plenty of promise as a combination early in the year.

The former Dragon has also kicked two 40-20s, forced three line drop-outs, and assisted on five line breaks. No wonder he's happy.

Plays To Watch: The Panthers sucked the Raiders in with a couple of short balls to their second-rowers in their sweeping plays, before Soward found some success for his wingers by chipping over the top on the right edge and firing out what has been some impressive long balls on the left.

On the flip side, two of the Rabbitohs’ four tries came with face balls from young hookers Apisai Koroisau and Cameron McInnes to Luke Burgess and Sam Burgess respectively. With a full set of six in attack, it's South Sydney's go-to play at least one or two times a set.

Where It Will Be Won: Surprise, surprise - in the middle. As was the case against the Dragons, and the Roosters in Round 1, when South Sydney's big men bully the other team's big men, they generally walk away with the two points. But when their forwards lose the ruck battle, the field position and, on occasion, their heads, then ill-discipline creeps in and a frustrating loss generally follows.

What Are The Odds: The Bunnies have been backed from $1.87 into $1.68 with Sportsbet.com.au as money has come in six to onr in their favour in head-to-head betting. The Panthers have eased from $1.93 out to $2.15. Punters are very keen on the Rabbits covering the -3.5 point line at $1.92 – money eight to one in their favour.

The History: Played 83; Penrith 36, South Sydney 45, Drawn 2. The Panthers have yet to taste victory against the Rabbitohs since Michael Maguire took over in 2012, losing their past three games against the NRL heavyweights. In their one and only clash last season, South Sydney belted Penrith 44-32 on their own turn turf, with winger Nathan Merritt grabbing a hat trick and fullback Greg Inglis breaking the line three times.

Match Officials: Referees – Ashley Klein & Adam Gee; Touch Judges – Nick Beashel & Brett Suttor; Video Referees – Steve Clark & Luke Patten.

Televised: Channel Nine – Delayed 7.3pm (AEST).

The Way We See It: We had some success going with the form guide last week, having picked the Panthers by eight. So we'll be led by that again. Not since 2008 has a winning margin for either side been lower than 12 points. And with Penrith yet to back up a win this year, we'll go Rabbitohs by 13-plus.

- - - Updated - - -

Panthers
1 Matt Moylan
2 Dallin Watene-Zelezniak
3 Dean Whare
4 Jamal Idris
5 Josh Mansour
6 Jamie Soward
7 Peter Wallace (c)
8 Sam McKendry
9 Kevin Kingston (c)
10 Tim Grant
11Sika Manu
12 Elijah Taylor
13 Adam Docker

Interchange
14 James Segeyaro
15 Jeremy Latimore
16 Lewis Brown
17 Nigel Plum
18 Isaah Yeo

Coach: Ivan Cleary

- - - Updated - - -

Rabbitohs
1 Greg Inglis
2 Nathan Merritt
3 Dylan Walker
4 Joel Reddy
5 Bryson Goodwin
6 John Sutton (c)
7 Adam Reynolds
8 Dave Tyrrell
9 Apisai Koroisau
10 George Burgess
11 Kyle Turner
12 Ben Te’o
13 Sam Burgess


Interchange
14 Cameron McInnes
15 Chris McQueen
16 Jason Clark
17 Luke Burgess
18 Alex Johnston
19 Ben Lowe
20 Joe Picker


Coach: Michael Maguire

[Tamwelg]

Vbookie added

[Tamwelg]

2 all halftime, bunnies go on to win 18 -2.

[TITAN PETE]

Merritt writes his Rabbitohs legend

By Matt Encarnacion, Western Sydney Correspondent
NRL.com
9:40pm Fri 11th April, 2014


South Sydney winger Nathan Merritt finally became the most prolific try-scorer in the club's history as his side recorded an 18-2 win over Penrith on Friday night.

Having equalled Benny Wearing's 81-year record of 144 tries in last year's grand final qualifier against Melbourne, the Souths veteran celebrated his 145th with a pat of a Rabbitoh on an Aboriginal flag in the north-east corner of Sportingbet Stadium.

In slippery conditions, the crowd of 11,764 who braved the wet were treated to a masterclass in defence as the Rabbitohs shut out the home side despite a lopsided possession count in the first half.

It was the visitors who opened the scoring, showing no hesitation in shooting at goal after earning an early penalty.

But it was their brave goal-line defence that was the feature of the opening 40 minutes, turning away the Panthers' attack time and again as the home side struggled to turn their dominance of the football – and the 8-5 penalty count - into points.

Such was the home side's control of possession, at one stage the visitors were limited to just one set inside opposition territory over a 26-minute period midway through the half, forcing Sam Burgess into a game-high 27 tackles for the opening period. He was ably supported by hooker Apisai Koroisau (22) and second-rower Ben Te'o (22).

In the end, a botched Adam Reynolds line drop out that sailed over the sideline in the 30th minute – bizarrely greeted by high-fives from his giddy teammates - became Penrith's only source of points for the game as both side went into the sheds locked at 2-2.

It took 45 minutes, but it was South Sydney debutant Kirisome Auva'a who crossed for the first four-pointer of the night, sliding over after the Rabbitohs shifted left. Reynolds' attempt missed but their lead extended to 6-2.

By then momentum was well and truly with the visitors, who took full advantage of the turn in possession by setting up for Merritt's historic try.

Having forced a line drop out of their own, the Rabbitohs charged through the middle before surprising the Panthers on a blindside play that ended with Dylan Walker passing to his winger.

And while it was a night to remember for South Sydney's second most capped player, it was youngster Kyle Turner who sealed the win with a try set up by fullback Greg Inglis in the 71st.

Reynolds was put on report in the 28th minute for putting Jamal Idris' arm in a dangerous position, while Jamie Soward will also face the wrath of the match review committee for making contact to Nathan Merritt's head in a tackle in the ninth minute.

South Sydney Rabbitohs 18 (Auva'a, Merritt, Turner tries; Reynolds 3 goals) def Penrith Panthers 2 (Soward goal). Crowd: 11,764.

[DIEHARD]

Ah should have betted on the Bunnies. Glad to see them win in terrible conditions. Merritt now leading try scorer for the Bunnies!