Round 17: Rabbitohs v Cowboys preview
The Cowboys travel south to continue to fight for a spot in the top eight, whilst the Rabbitohs want to cement a top four position on the ladder.
This victory would be an invaluable one for both sides, especially for the Cowboys, a side who seems to be finding some in form game play again and have the potential to find themselves back into the top 8 and playing finals footy.
South Sydney are coming in red hot following their first bye of the season, where prior to this they were upset by the Dragons where even there final efforts of three tries in three minutes couldn't save them.
After pulling out from Origin Game II, Latrell Mitchell will not be playing, now reaching almost a month out of the game due to his lingering calf injury. Cody Walker (quad) and Tom Burgess (back) are set to return to the side both after suffering respective injuries, with Walker slotting back into five eighth and Burgess on the bench. Jed Cartwright replaces Jacob Host in the second row, with Davvy Maole playing his first NRL match since Round 9. Both NSW Origin reps, Cam Murray and Damien Cook, have been named to back up and play.
North QLD had a tough game last week, but they ended up claiming victory over the "baby" Panthers after 88 gruelling minutes. Scott Drinkwater and Tom Dearden majorly stepped up in a game where they were missing five of their star players due to Origin, and they managed to finally outplay Penrith in golden point after an unexpected game.
The Cowboys have named all their Origin reps as reserves for the side, with their starting 17 the same as their win against Penrith last week, aside from a forced change. With Heilum Luki suffering a facial fracture it sees Jack Gosiewski join the bench and ¬¬Kulikefu Finefeuiaki start, along with Jason Taumalolo set to start after making his post-injury comeback from the bench last round. This starting side could change come kick-off but for now it is expected that all Origin players will be rested pending the outcomes from Game II.
History is not on the side of the Cowboys for this match, with the Rabbitohs having enjoyed seven straight wins against North QLD, where they haven't tasted victory for almost 6 years now. The Cowboys also have lost four of their last five at Accor Stadium, whilst the Bunnies have only lost two games at Accor so far this year.
This late Sunday afternoon game is lining up to be a good one, with a mix of stars both playing and missing out for both sides, it'll be a challenge to see who will rise for the occasion.
Last meeting: Round 24 2022 - Rabbitohs 20 Cowboys 10
Who to watch: Campbell Graham has had an excellent season so far, where he has scored fourteen tries in fourteen games, including two doubles and two hat tricks, along with five try assists. He has been such an asset and weapon down the right side for the Bunnies, and I have no doubt that come Sunday he'll pull something out of the bag both in attack and defence.
Having a stellar game last week and scoring the match winning try, Scott Drinkwater is constantly showing his worth as the season continues. Having scored three of his own tries and assisting with seven over the past four games, he is becoming one of the Cowboys' many star players when they produce a good game. Hopefully he will continue his powerful runs and attack into this match on Sunday.
Favourite: South Sydney are favoured to get back into the winning circle and add another two points to their count, and allow them to cement a top four position for another round.
My tip: I feel as if the Rabbitohs are a hot and cold team, and without Mitchell if the Cowboys manage to shut down Walker, they have a better change at claiming victory. Although the Cowboys are set to be missing a plethora of players due to Origin, they showed last week that they are capable of still stringing together a good game. I believe that both sides have a chance of winning, but I'm hoping to see the Cowboys come out on the other side and have their previous wins continue to fuel their fire. Cowboys by 6.
