Round 22: Sharks v Rabbitohs preview
Sharks and Souths set for significant struggle
Saturday night at Shark Park will see the 15th placed South Sydney Rabbitohs travel to the shire where the 4th placed Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks will be waiting for them. The Sharks have had a poor run of form which sees them just clinging on to their top four spot for the moment, and they will have work to do in the back end of the season if they are going to rediscover their earlier form. Hornby's Rabbitohs have won just one of their past three after their mid-season surge.
The Sharks will be very disappointed with their performance against the North Queensland Cowboys last weekend, which saw them go down 30-22. A sin bin for Blayke Brailey in the first half made life difficult, and despite a late Atkinson try Cronulla had no chance of chasing down the home side. The Sharks loss is even more worrying due to the Cowboys' massive injury toll, with Cronulla definitely having expected to get the job done.
Will Kennedy is the big in for the Sharks this week, resuming his role at fullback after a suspension. A knee injury sees Ronaldo Mulitalo on the sidelines, giving Sam Stonestreet the number five jersey. Royce Hunt is back in after missing the Cowboys clash through illness, with Jack Williams also rejoining the 17. Tom Hazelton hasn't been named due to a foot injury, but he is expected to return the week after.
After stringing together five straight wins, the Rabbitohs have been brought back to reality somewhat with two losses from their past three games (their win game against the last-placed Tigers). Last week saw them go down by twenty to a Canberra side that got out to a quick start, with the Bunnies trailing the whole way through the 80 minutes. Admittedly facing a near insurmountable challenge to make the finals, in the end it's only four competition points separating them from The Dolphins in 8th, so they will be holding out hope for a miracle.
Cameron Murray's two game suspension from his bizarre bench sin binning in state of origin has come to an end, so the skipper will start in the back row, pushing Tallis Duncan to the bench. A season-ending achilles injury to Alex Johnston hands Fletcher Myers his NRL debut on the wing. Peter Mamouzelos and Liam Le Blanc drop out of the 17 to make way for the returnees, including Richie Kennar in the centres. Michael Chee Kam drops to the bench.
These two sides have already met this season, with the Sharks coming out as the victors in round six.
Last meeting: Round 6 2024 - Rabbitohs 22 Sharks 34
Who to watch: After making his first grade debut back in round seven in a massive win against the Cowboys, Cronulla winger Sam Stonestreet is set to make his second appearance in the NRL this weekend. Stonestreet crossed for 13 tries in just 16 games for the Newtown Jets in 2023, demonstrating plenty of potential, potential that at just 22 years of age he has plenty of time to realise. With Ronaldo Mulitalo sitting on the sidelines for the next month, this is the perfect opportunity for Stonestreet to impress and hold onto his spot in the top flight longer term.
On the opposing side is another inexperienced winger in the number 2 for Souths, Fletcher Myers. Myers has been named to make his NRL debut in this game at 21 years of age. The Newcastle junior made his debut in the NSW Cup with just one appearance back in 2021, before spending some time in Manly's junior reps and not returning to the open age arena until 2023. Myers started this season back home in Newcastle, before making his Souths reserve grade debut in round 18. It's only taken four games for the Rabbitohs in NSW Cup for him to earn himself a first grade spot, and with Alex Johnston out long term, he too will want to impress.
FAVOURITE: The Sharks are the strong favourites to get the job done at home.
MY TIP: I think this is a great opportunity for Cronulla to get their season back on track, and it would be poor if they passed up on it. Sharks by 14.
