The South Sydney Rabbitohs have recorded an important 36-14 win in a game consisting very much of two halves, up against The Dolphins in front of 23,280 fans at Suncorp Stadium to open Round Seven.
The Dolphins started fast in front of their home fans, running in the first try of the night in just the 3rd minute. It was great work from Kodi Nikorima to set up the try, initially through the kick that forced a Taane Milne error, and then through the cut-out ball for Euan Aitken on the left edge in the following play. Jamayne Isaako nailed the conversion attempt from the left sideline to give The Dolphins an early 6-0 lead.
The next 15 minutes were dominated by The Dolphins, with the Rabbitohs barely seeing their opposition's half. But an accidental offside penalty conceded by the home side gave South Sydney their first attacking opportunity in the 22nd minute, and they certainly made use of it. Latrell Mitchell threw the pass that put Campbell Graham through a big defensive hole, and just like that the scores were level.
The back end of the first half saw The Dolphins slot right back into their early control, and a 29th minute penalty goal saw this reflected on the scoreboard. Then, Jeremy Marshall-King decided to take matters into his own hand, selling a dummy from dummy half to slide over the line nearly untouched in the 35th minute off the back of some repeat sets. The successful conversion saw the half-time scoreline read 14-6 to The Dolphins.
The Dolphins started the second half in very similar fashion to the first, winning a repeat set in just their first possession. This time though, they couldn't make use of the early field position. But the Rabbitohs certainly could - a barnstorming first set of the half saw them rush downfield and force a dropout through some bizarre play, before Campball Graham found himself on the back end of a Lachlan Ilias chip kick in the 46th minute.
Just a few minutes later, Cody Walker gave his side the lead back with one of the most bizarre tries of the season. It all started with an Alex Johnston run on the left edge, before his offload bounced off two Dolphins players and fell perfectly for Walker to ground in the in-goal. Mitchell's conversion took the scorecard to 18-14 Bunnies way in the 51st minute.
With the game now very much under South Sydney's control, a Dolphins sin bin only made everything worse for the home side. Kenny Bromwich hit Taane Milne very early while chasing through a kick, and found himself on the sidelines for ten minutes. Just a minute later, Isaiah Tass extended the lead for the away side, before Latrell Mitchell took the game out of reach with another 4-pointer in the 65th minute.
Alex Johnston crossed for the final points of the night in the 68th minute to take the scoreline to 36-14. The Rabbitohs will be happy to record back-to-back wins, with the victory lifting them all the way up into third on the ladder for now. They'll face the Panthers in Homebush next Thursday. Meanwhile, The Dolphins will aim to bounce back against the Gold Coast next Sunday.