Sydney Roosters playmaker James Maloney says he is impressed with the late season efforts of his South Sydney counterpart Luke Keary ahead of Friday’s NRL preliminary final showdown between the bitter arch-rivals.
After recovering from a pectoral injury suffered at the pre-season Auckland Nines, Keary has been instrumental in the Rabbitohs surge to premiership favouritism and their third successive preliminary final.
Former NSW five-eighth Maloney will square off against rookie Keary at ANZ Stadium on Friday night and says the premiers need to be wary of his halves combination with Adam Reynolds.
CATCH UP ON THE LATEST NRL HIGHLIGHTS
“He’s been good,” he said.
“Obviously they had a really strong win the other week so it’s going to be a big game.
“We’ve got (to deal with) those guys in the halves, obviously Sutto (John Sutton), as another ball playing option so we’ll have a look at them.
“(Keary and Reynolds in the halves) just frees up Johnny Sutton, it’s another point of attack on an edge.
“They looked pretty dangerous a couple of weeks back so we’ll have to be good.”
However Maloney believes past finals failures could come back to haunt Souths against the world club champions.
“No doubt they’re going to be ready for the game, there’s a lot at stake for them,” Maloney said.
“Obviously they’ve had a couple of years where they’ve come so close and no doubt that will be playing on their minds so we’ll see how it goes.”
Reckon you can pick the winning team? Build your own dream team with Draftstars daily fantasy and compete on any match. For great odds on the NRL head on over to PlayUp. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.
Powerbrokers at the Sydney Roosters are scratching their heads at what could've been after David Fifita's 80th minute contract bust - with the club…
Wayne Bennett has agreed to terms on a $3 million, three-year deal to return to South Sydney, according to a report. The Sydney Morning…
Canberra coach Ricky Stuart has inked a lengthy contract extension despite 11 years at the club without a premiership. The Raiders have announced a…
Gold Coast forward David Fifita has backflipped on his decision to join the Roosters on a four-year deal to remain at the Titans in…
When Queensland forward Tazmin Rapana "flipped the bird" at the NSW crowd after scoring a try in last year's State of Origin series, it…
An NRL investigation is underway into an incident during the Broncos' 30-14 win over the Eels at CommBank Stadium in which a fan allegedly…
