Bulldogs v Rabbitohs preview

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs v South Sydney Rabbitohs
ANZ Stadium - Friday 4:00pm

Last year's Grand Finalists do battle once again on Good Friday for the chance to go top of the table.

Having gone down in last years decider, the Bulldogs will be out to continue the Rabbitohs losing form. Fresh off the back of three straight wins, the Bulldogs have shown tremendous early season form to be placed in the top four. With Brett Morris, Tim Lafai and Josh Reynolds back from injury, the Bulldogs will be eager to continue their winning form, while the likes of Josh Morris, Aiden Tolman, Josh Jackson and Trent Hodkinson will be out to push their representative claims.

Having conquered all who stood before them, South Sydney finally showed their mortality against the Eels. While far from disgraced, the Rabbitohs will look back on last week's performance at Pirtek Stadium as a missed opportunity. With the Rabbitohs likely to feature heavily during the representative season, Michael Maguire will be eager for his troops to secure as many early wins as possible to ensure they are positioned well enough to stake a claim to be the first side since the Broncos over 20 years ago to perform the lap of honour in consecutive years.

Last meeting: Grand Final 2014 - South Sydney Rabbitohs 30 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 6

Who to watch: With each of the top four sides featuring halves eligible for New South Wales, the pressure will be on incumbent halves Trent Hodkinson and Josh Reynolds to maintain their positions in Laurie Daley's side. Playing a leading role in Reynolds' absence, Hodkinson has demonstrated the form which has seen the off-contract halfback in such high demand on a consistent basis. Coming up with two sideline conversions against the Tigers, the former Manly number seven will need to be at his best if the Bulldogs are to avenge the disappointment of last October.

Having lead the Rabbitohs to their first premiership since 1971, Adam Reynolds will be out to usurp his opposite number for the right to face up against the Maroons in May. With Reynolds outscoring Hodkinson with four try-assists to three, state selectors will have a keen eye on the performances of both halfbacks as they look to get their sides a win on Friday afternoon.

The favourite: While last week's loss to the Eels was a minor slip up, the Rabbitohs have shown this season they are still the team to beat.

My tip: With both goal-kicking halfbacks operating at over 80%, the success rate of each kicker will likely play a major role in the outcome of the match. Rabbitohs by 8.

1. Brett Morris 2. Curtis Rona 3. Josh Morris 4. Timoteo Lafai 5. Sam Perrett 6. Josh Reynolds 7. Trent Hodkinson 8. Aiden Tolman 9. Michael Lichaa 10. James Graham 11. Josh Jackson 12. Tony Williams 13. Greg Eastwood
Interchange: 14. Sam Kasiano 15. David Klemmer 16. Frank Pritchard 17. Tim Browne 19. Moses Mbye 20. Corey Thompson

1. Greg Inglis 2. Alex Johnston 3. Daryl Millard 4. Bryson Goodwin 5. Joel Reddy 6. Luke Keary 7. Adam Reynolds 8. George Burgess 9. Issac Luke 10. David Tyrrell 11. Glenn Stewart 12. Chris McQueen 13. Tim Grant
Interchange: 14. Cameron McInnes 15. Ben Lowe 16. Chris Grevsmuhl 17. Thomas Burgess 18. Jason Clark 19. Nathan Brown

Referees: Gerard Sutton, Gavin Morris; Sideline Officials: Grant Atkins, Nick Beashel; Video Referees: Bernard Sutton, Luke Phillips;

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