Rabbitohs v Broncos preview

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Souths fight for pride against slip sliding Broncos

This will be an interesting clash between two sides that are in the depths of despair at the current time. Souths have been unable to get out of 2nd gear and find themselves languishing in 12th spot with just 5 wins. It has been an unhappy camp for the Redfern boys who have served up some pretty poor defensive displays over the past 6 weeks. Much was expected of the Rabbitohs especially with the offseason signing of Sam Burgess and the development of Adam Reynolds along with youngsters Alex Johnstone and Cody Walker.

With them all but out of finals contention the Rabbitohs are merely playing for pride in their famous jersey and would want nothing more than pegging down the visiting Broncos and continue their dip in form. Fresh off the bye, Souths are recharged and will be hoping that Adam Reynolds can make his NRL comeback (after missing Origin III) unscathed.

Brisbane are in a real battle at the moment. They have seen their season crumble in front of their eyes over the past month including thumping defeats by Canterbury (40-14) and Melbourne (48-6). There has been a lot of focus on their defence which looks tired and fatigued through a long season. The bye last week would have refreshed them but they are again put into a position where they will have no less than 5 players backing up from State of Origin match on Wednesday night. That said, it's not all doom and gloom for the Broncos. They have a 9-7 record and will fancy themselves against an out of sorts Souths side. A win here could change their season and give them that boost of confidence that they are desperately lacking. Their forward pack needs to lay the platform to take the pressure off under performing halves Anthony Milford and Ben Hunt. 

Last meeting: Round 8 2016 - Broncos 30 Rabbitohs 8

Souths have dropped the past two games against Brisbane by big margins (they lost 47-12 in Round 25, 2015) but had won the previous 4 clashes before that. At ANZ Stadium, Brisbane have a mediocre record with 11 wins and 10 losses from 21 games played at the venue. These two sides have only played each other at ANZ Stadium twice with the Rabbitohs winning both clashes.

Who to watch: For Souths one of their stars through this difficult season has been fullback Cody Walker. Walker just recently re-signed for 3 more years and appears very happy at the back. Blessed with pace, safe under the high ball and good playmaking ability out the back of the attacking line gives Souths with another option offensively. Look for his combination and early ball given to Souths' outside backs on Saturday Night. 4 tries, 9 try assists and 8 line breaks show how talented Walker is and expect to see him giving his all to help Souths stuttering attack to fire.

For Brisbane, they will win this game on the back of their forward pack. They have been dominated through the middle in the past fortnight and need to rectify this asap. Adam Blair needs to stand up and be counted on Saturday with a strong display through the middle. Look for him to dent back the defensive line of the Rabbits and create that 2nd phase play that Brisbane like to play. Defensively he needs to be strong and lock down that middle third of the field. As a big body, Blair needs to use his size to his advantage and stop the amount of metres after contact that Souths make (something they couldn't do against the Storm). With only two games this year that he has run for over 100 metres, Blair needs to do it for a 3rd time if the Broncs are to nab the 2 points.

The favourite: The Rabbitohs horrendous form sees the Broncos as favourites for this game.

My tip: Despite being at home I have no confidence tipping Souths and don't know if they can stop the Broncos from scoring (even though the Broncos themselves are in a rut). The Burgess clan and co would need to fire up and play out of their skin. Look for the Broncos to snap their losing streak and record their 10th win of season 2016 in a scrappy affair. Brisbane by 10.

1. Cody Walker 2. Alex Johnston 20. Ed Murphy 4. Aaron Gray 5. Joe Burgess 11. John Sutton 6. Luke Keary 8. Thomas Burgess 9. Cameron McInnes 10. Nathan Brown 16. David Tyrrell 12. Kyle Turner 13. Sam Burgess
Interchange: 14. Damien Cook 15. Jason Clark 16. George Burgess 17. Angus Crichton

1. Darius Boyd 2. Corey Oates 5. Jordan Kahu 4. James Roberts 20. Lachlan Maranta 6. Anthony Milford 7. Ben Hunt 8. Josh McGuire 9. Andrew McCullough 10. Adam Blair 11. Sam Thaiday 3. Alex Glenn 21. Jai Arrow
Interchange: 14. Jarrod Wallace 15. Tevita Pangai Junior 16. Jo Ofanhengaue 17. Herman Essese

Referees: Jared Maxwell, Adam Gee; Sideline Officials: Brett Suttor, Nick Morel; Video Referees: Luke Patten, Bryan Norrie, Ashley Klein