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Many South Sydney fans were expecting to be watching their team contest the grand final today, but following their preliminary capitulation against the Sea Eagles, it’s hard to envision anything but a lengthy continuation of the premiership drought for long suffering South Sydney Rabbitohs fans.
The premiership window was open, the sun was shining, and the Rabbits just didn’t have the game to make any hay.
While the Rabbitohs are a genuine rugby league steamroller, once the engine is stopped, they simply can’t pull themselves back into the game against sides with the deftness of hand and fleetness of foot to attack in wide areas.
The entirety of South Sydney’s game is built on momentum through the middle of the park.
The team feeds off the huge fullback they have in GI winning the contact and providing a quick play-the-ball off a kick return, then using their big bodies to keep the opposition on the back foot.
The secret to John Sutton’s newfound consistency is a consistently retreating line.
As well as this, it is absolutely perfect for the game of Issac Luke, his burst of pace from dummy half exactly what this style of game plan needs. To Michael Maguire’s credit, he has built a gameplan around his players strengths.
When they get down into an attacking position, keep charging into the forwards, sucking attackers in, before a shift to the edge to see Sutton or Inglis straighten up, or through the hands to put Merritt or Farrell over untouched in the corner. If all else fails, roll it into the in-goal and start again. Barge, bash, wear and tear until the opposition has surrendered.
What if they don’t surrender? Plan B? Well, there is no plan B. And therein lays the problem for the cardinal and myrtle faithful.
If the momentum is halted or the opposition isn’t worn down quickly enough, there is very little to fall back on, apart from some Greg Inglis magic.
In comparison to the two sides contesting the premiership on the final weekend, for the Rabbits there is no Jamie Lyon, Steve Matai or Michael Jennings out in the far corridors of the field who can do damage just with a little bit of early ball and a little bit of space.
Chris McQueen and Ben Te’o are hard line runners, but do not possess the raw power of a Cordner, the ball playing of a Glenn Stewart or the footwork of a Guerra to create something when Plan A just isn’t working.
Perhaps most troubling, there is no real threat when halfback Adam Reynolds has the ball in hand unless the ball is there to be kicked, akin to Jamie Soward of the 2009 Dragons, which allows the defence to keep a sharp focus on the outside backs.
The Rabbitohs play strictly middle third football, rather than across the park. It’s great for the regular season, once again like the 2009 Dragons demonstrated, but there needs to be another gear in September which the Rabbits just don’t have.
The 2009 Dragons found the solution to their attacking ailments in the return of the prodigal son, Mark Gasnier.
This forced teams to be equally wary of both sides of the park rather than stacking the left for the trademark shift play, as well as giving Wayne Bennett’s side an attacking player with a bit of genuine spark about him.
The right edge was now potent, Gas’ arrival removing the stifling influence of Beau Scott in the centres and bringing Jason Nightingale back into the game. Just the presence of that one player completely changed the Dragons before the whistle was blown. The final piece in the premiership puzzle.
There doesn’t seem to be a proverbial Gasnier on the horizon for Souths, to bring something to the side rather than steamroll football.
In fact it’s almost the opposite. Souths are now bleeding valuable depth, with Roy Asotasi, Michael Crocker, Andrew Everingham, Dylan Farrell, Justin Hunt, Matt King and Nathan Peats notable losses to the Souths squad.
They are to be replaced by just Joel Reddy, a fair player in his own right, but certainly not the final piece in the puzzle to take Souths to the title.
Unless they can pull a rabbit out of the hat, 2014 is looming as an unwanted hat-trick for Souths – close, but no cigar.
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