Mitchell Moses has steered the Wests Tigers to an convincing 16-point win over the struggling Rabbitohs.
Final score:
Wests Tigers 30
South Sydney Rabbitohs 14
Friday night footy sees the Wests Tigers face the South Sydney Rabbitohs in a cross-town battle at ANZ Stadium. Join The Roar from 7:50pm (AEST) for live coverage.
Robbie Farah returns to add experience to the Tigers, after they went down to the Roosters 32-18 last Sunday in wet conditions.
Halves Mitchell Moses and Luke Brooks failed to provide any spark in that match, James Tedesco carrying the struggling team.
The Rabbitohs also experienced heartache last week, after Ashley Taylor buried them in golden point to give the Titans a 29-28 win in Perth.
A positive to come out of the match was rookie Siosifa Talakai scoring a try with his first touch in first grade. Talakai has been named to back up in an unchanged team coming off a five-day turnaround.
Cody Walker will once again play at fullback after Greg Inglis made the switch to five-eighth. The skipper will be crucial for the Rabbitohs and needs to be prominent in attack.
In 27 meetings between the two clubs, the Bunnies have won 25 matches while Wests have been victorious on 12 occasions, including their last meeting, a 30-22 victory in Round 9 of this year.
Prediction
South Sydney will be determined after going down in such heartbreaking circumstances last week.
Rabbitohs by 10.
Join The Roar from 7:50pm (AEST) for live score updates and debate in our live blog.
Josh
Guest
Thanks Alex. I read a report earlier that he may be out. As for why he is on the bench when he is fit. I don't know either
Alex L
Roar Rookie
This week, he was injured, beyond that.. no idea.
Josh
Guest
Lol. I agree. It was torturous. They look like a really unhappy team to me. Players are missing simple tackles, knocking on if somebody breaks wind, giving away blatantly stupid penalties. It also looks like players are out of position but that is only my opinion. Inglis does not look like a five eight. Whenever Keary has come on this year ( for a token 20 minutes ) and Inglis is pushed to centre they look a much better team. Can anybody clarify what is happening with Luke Keary? I understand he has some personality clashes with some big names at the Rabbitohs. It seems like there are some big egos there and nothing is getting sorted out. It may be Keary's fault himself. Either way, it looks like a miserable culture there
Alex L
Roar Rookie
Post premiership melancholies, no Te'o to protect Reynolds and no real acquisitions... I think there are too many other things going on to simplify it down to that.
Black cowboy
Guest
There's probably something wrong with his current club, but that's none of my business. So long as they looked after him well so can terrorize the Blues in SOO
Muzz
Guest
He is a capable leader however his heart is not in it which has an adverse effect.
JoM
Roar Rookie
Do you think that they have been going worse since Inglis was made captain and Sutton was dumped? Personally I don't think Inglis is doing his job as captain.
Muzz
Guest
That's nothing to be proud of when it's club footy, and the income he receives which gives him the life that most dream of. SOO income $90k a series Club related income $1 million + a year
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
That concludes The Roar's coverage of Wests Tigers vs South Sydney Rabbitohs. Be sure to join us over the remainder of the round, with live coverage of all three games tomorrow starting with Scott Pryde taking you through Newcastle Knights vs New Zealand Warriors from 3pm (AEST). I'll be back on Sunday afternoon from 4pm (AEST) for Manly Sea Eagles vs Penrith Panthers. Thanks for following along.
Muzz
Guest
60% of the team are committed and hungry but lack polish and could do with some on field leadership. The other 40% are just going through the motions.
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
The week ahead: Newcastle Knights versus New Zealand Warriors - Saturday, June 11, 3pm (AEST) at Hunter Stadium Parramatta Eels versus Gold Coast Titans - Saturday, June 11, 5:30pm (AEST) at TIO Stadium Sydney Roosters versus Melbourne Storm - Saturday, June 11, 7:30pm (AEST) at Allianz Stadium Manly Sea Eagles versus Penrith Panthers - Sunday, June 12, 4pm (AEST) at Brookvale Oval St George Illawarra Dragons versus Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs - Monday, June 13, 4pm (AEST) at ANZ Stadium Cronulla Sharks versus North Queensland Cowboys - Monday, June 13, 7pm (AEST) at Southern Cross Group Stadium
Emcie
Roar Guru
Won't Pearce be back?
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
The ladder as it stands: 1. Cronulla Sharks - 22 2. Melbourne Storm - 22 3. North Queensland Cowboys - 18 4. Brisbane Broncos - 18 5. Parramatta Eels - 16 6. Canberra Raiders - 15 7. Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs - 14 8. Gold Coast Titans - 14 9. St George Illawarra Dragons - 14 10. Penrith Panthers - 12 11. South Sydney Rabbitohs - 12 12. New Zealand Warriors - 12 13. Wests Tigers - 12 14. Manly Sea Eagles - 10 15. Sydney Roosters - 8 16. Newcastle Knights - 0
Muzz
Guest
That's the price you pay for recently winning a comp. Surely you're use to it by now.
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
MVP Nominations 3 - Mitchell Moses 2 - Kevin Naiqama 1 - Nathan Brown Wests Tigers 30 South Sydney Rabbitohs 14
Alex L
Roar Rookie
To describe the Rabbitohs performance as rubbish would be uncharitable to the contents of a green bin.
Muzz
Guest
Tim Grant was bending the line. Best game in a number of seasons. Moses D is improving. He's a natural playmaker and a future star.
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
FULL-TIME Possession: 55% - 45% Completions: 33/39 (85%) - 23/30 (77%) All Runs: 173 - 147 All Run Metres: 1627 - 1296 Line Breaks: 6 - 5 Offloads: 17 - 10 Tackles: 279 - 299 Missed Tackles: 25 - 43 Penalties: 5 - 9 Errors: 8 - 5 Wests Tigers 30 South Sydney Rabbitohs 14
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
FULL-TIME The Wests Tigers have blown the Rabbitohs away with a convincing 16-point win. They showed attacking prowess early with Josh Addo-Carr going close to scoring in the sixth minute only to drop the ball on his way to the line. Another bombed try came ten minutes later for the Tigers with Luke Brooks chipping inside for his halves partner Mitchell Moses. Moses was found to knock the ball on in an attempt to gain possession with the decision being given the red light from upstairs. Moses put it behind him however busting the line just a minute later to open scoring. Then the joint venture came with guns blazing off the kick-off with Tim Simona rocketing away to score after Kevin Naiqama broke the line. It wasn't until the 32nd minute when the Rabbitohs got their first scoring opportunity with Alex Johnston touching down to put Souths on the board. The Wests Tigers got another try before the break with David Nofoaluma scoring after some classy handwork. The Rabbitohs went into the break trailling by ten points. They were the first to score in the second half however with Alex Johnston crossing for his second in the 54th minute to celebrate his 50th NRL game. Just three minutes later the Wests Tigers replied through Chris Lawrence with Luke Brooks putting the vice-captain over the line. Kevin Naiqama was next to score as the momentum shifted in favour of the joint venture. It came after Mitchell Moses and James Tedesco provided good hands for the Fijian international to weave his way through the line. Then in the following set from the kick-off Robbie Farah put off-field dramas behind him to run 50m to score and extend the Tigers' lead. The Rabbitohs found some brilliance in the attack in the 69th minute after Cody Walker broke the line eventually spreading the ball to Adam Reynolds who provided a cut-out pass for Aaron Gray in which the returning winger was unable to get to. They stayed in the match with Kirisome Auva'a scoring after Alex Johnston batted the ball back into play. A similar play followed just two minutes later only for the ball to come forward off the hands of Johnston. In the end Souths' defensive line couldn't contain the Tigers' attack with the home side coming away with a 16-point victory. Wests Tigers 30 South Sydney Rabbitohs 14
Red Dog
Guest
And that's why he will be ,,,,LOYALTY