NRL Round 24 Preview and Prediction - South Sydney Rabbitohs v New Zealand Warriors @ ANZ Stadium
South Sydney Rabbitohs (11th) v New Zealand Warriors (12th) @ ANZ Stadium
Preview - The Rabbitohs are looking to replicate their hot streak of end 2016, again in 2017, as they aim for 3 wins on the bounce against the downtrodden Warriors on Friday night at ANZ Stadium. The Rabbitohs were far too good for the Bulldogs last weekend, with the 28-14 winning margin probably not being indicative of how dominant they were. The Warriors are a mess right now, having lost their last 4 games by big margins, as another season peters out pathetically. The Warriors have now conceded over 25 points in all of their last 5 losses, and Steven Kearney has now questioned the attitude and resilience of some of his players on more than one occasion.
History - Interestingly these two sides have only three times since 2013 . The Warriors have an awful recent record though against the Rabbitohs having lost five in a row against Souths. Souths haven't played the Warriors in Sydney since way back in 2011, where the Warriors were victorious.
South Sydney Rabbitohs’ Scouting Report - The Rabbitohs have suffered a big blow on the eve of this game with unchanged Sam Burgess ruled out with a rib injury. Both Thomas and George Burgess had close to their best games of the season in the last two weeks, after underwhelming campaigns. Angus Crichton is back in the starting back row after coming off the bench last week.
New Zealand Warriors’ Scouting Report - Jacob Lillyman moves into the starting front row for the suspended Ben Matulino. Kieran Foran returns to the side after a week off with a shoulder injury. Mafoa'aeata Hingano impressed in patches last week and gets another chance to start at halfback, to push his claims for a permanent role next season.
Verdict – Souths 13+ in a high scoring game
It’s hard to see anything other than a thumping win for the Rabbitohs here to make it 3 in a row. With Sam Burgess out it gives me a little less confidence however The Rabbitohs have impressed me the past 3 weeks, both with their attitude and the style of football they are playing. They are playing an enterprising brand of football with besides in motion and plenty of ball movement. Crucially, Souths still appear to be playing for each other, whilst the Warriors are simply marking time before the end of the season once more. I think this game will potentially be the highest scoring game of the weekend, with the majority of the scoring being from the men in red and green.