Chee-Kam splits Souths late to steal win

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Wests Tigers v South Sydney Rabbitohs

The Wests Tigers have temporarily moved back into the top eight as Michael Chee-Kam stole the show late to condemn the Rabbitohs to their fourth-straight defeat on Thursday night. 

In front of a disappointing crowd of just over 9,000 fans both sides struggled to land the killer blow in a relatively uninspiring contest. 

While the attack wasn't perfect in tough conditions, Chee-Kam brought the Tigers faithful to their feet when he broke through in the 75th minute to score a stunning individual try. 

It topped a similar match-winning effort against Brisbane earlier in the year, with the 27-year old sprinting over 40 metres this time.

After surging to the top of the table early in the season, South Sydney welcome next week's bye after tasting their fourth-straight loss. 

It continues a tough Origin period for the club, who have also had to suffer the consequences of having five-eighth Cody Walker tossed aside after Game One. 

While looking dangerous at times, he still is struggling to capture his blistering form from the start of the year.

They also look set to be without prop George Burgess for an extended period after he was placed on report for an ugly eye gouging incident on Tigers hooker Robbie Farah.

The first try of the night came on South Sydney's lethal left edge. 

John Sutton shaped to go out wide to Walker but instead played it short to Braidon Burns. 

The change of angle caught the Tigers off guard and Corey Allan was trailing through in support to score. 

Having enjoyed 61% of the ball and 19 play the balls in the South Sydney red zone in the opening half, Wests eventually capitalised on their dominant field position in the 36th minute. 

Ranked first and third respectively at forced dropouts, both the Rabbitohs and Tigers were able to build pressure throughout the game using their short-range kicking game. 

But it was Corey Thompson who proved that a determined chase is all you need to turn a clever kick into points. 

He was able to get past two South Sydney defenders to pounce.

The two sides traded penalty goals in the early stages of the game, meaning that scores were level at eight points apiece at the break. 

In a fairly dour second half neither side was able to land the final blow, with the contest going down to the final seconds. 

The Rabbitohs looked to have stole the two points late when Adam Reynolds stepped up to slot a field goal from right in front.

But Chee-Kam once more proved the hero as he raced away in the dying stages to seal the win for the home side. 

Next week Souths have the bye while Wests take on the Origin-depleted Roosters.