Monday Buzz: Phil Rothfield’s highlights and lowlights, Rabbitohs a premiership contenter again

They’ve been a shadow of the team that made the 2021 Grand Final, but the Rabbitohs have reemerged as premiership contenders, writes PHIL ROTHFIELD.

Reagan Campbell-Gillard after game one of 2022 (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

Phil Rothfield reveals his weekend highlights and lowlights while weighing in on Reagan Campbell-Gillard’s Blues snub and the NRL’s move into the hotel business.

HIGHLIGHT

The South Sydney Rabbitohs remerging as a genuine premiership contender via Cody Walker and Latrell Mitchell. They are not yet at Penrith’s level but their performance in Newcastle without Damien Cook, Jai Arrow and Alex Johnston showed they can be the major threat to the Panthers.

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Cody Walker and Latrell Mitchell have starred for the Blues (Photo by Ashley Feder/Getty Images)

LOWLIGHT

If you think the bunker and referees in the NRL are bad, check out the Wallabies v England Test match from Saturday night. Aussie centre Izaia Perese attempts an intercept but spills the ball forward.

He is sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on in the most absurd decision you will ever see on a football field. Australia scored two tries to one but were beaten by an English side that scored six penalty goals to one.

SHOOSH

If there was a betting market on this year’s Dally M coach-of-the-year award there would be three joint favourites – the Cowboys’ Todd Payten, the Sharks’ Craig Fitzgibbon and Ivan Cleary at the top-of-the-ladder Panthers.

SPOTTED

South Sydney Rabbitohs legend George Piggins with Latrell Mitchell and Cody Walker at Souths Juniors on Saturday at a player reunion and function to honour retired club greats Greg Inglis, Sam Burgess and John Sutton.

Cody Walker, George Piggins and Latrell Mitchell.

SPOTTED

David Nofouluma scored his 95th career try on Saturday night against the Eels to equal the record for most tries by a Wests Tigers, Wests Magpies or Balmain Tigers player – a record held by Arthur Patton from the 1940s. Approaching a century of tries at a club that has been down the ladder since he started is a phenomenal achievement.

SPOTTED

We’ve already got Nick Politis, Nick Pappas and Peter V’landys … now another Greek is making his mark in rugby league. Spiro Christopoulos is a producer on Ben Fordham’s 2GB breakfast show and a footy tragic. On Saturday night Spiro made his debut on the Continuous Call team as sideline reporter at Leichhardt Oval and did a terrific job.

SPOTTED

Wests Tigers chief executive Justin Pascoe doing selfies at Leichhardt Oval on Saturday night.

Reagan Campbell-Gillard after game one of 2022 (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

The most bizarre Blues snub ever?

The selection of Jacob Saifiti in the NSW Blues side for the Suncorp Stadium decider is one of the most confusing in State of Origin history.

Confusing because he beat in-form Parramatta Eels front-rower Reagan Campbell-Gillard for a position in the 17-man squad when Cowboys forward Jordan McLean was forced to withdraw.

Statistics are not everything but Campbell-Gillard’s are comprehensively superior to Saifiti in the NRL this year.

Blues coach Brad Fittler owned the decision in an interview with Nine Newspapers over the weekend.

“I think Reagan just has a style of footy and right now mostly he doesn’t suit the way we want to play,” he said.

What Freddy didn’t explain is exactly what Saifiti brings to the team that Campbell-Gillard doesn’t.

The negative on Campbell-Gillard is that he has one of the slower play-the-balls of all the front-rowers in the game.

Still it’s a big call for an Origin decider at Suncorp.

In Perth, Freddy and his selection advisor Greg Alexander proved those of us wrong who suggested panic had set in and questioned their seven team changes.

In Saifiti’s case, I hope they are on the money again. Go the Blues.

$25m is money well spent

The NRL’s decision to buy a $25 million asset should be applauded.

It should provide non-traditional revenue and put the game in a healthy long-term financial position.

However the timing and the way they went about purchasing the Gambaro hotel and restaurant is being questioned.

The NRL is facing some huge – and urgent - financial negotiations with their major stakeholders before the end of the season.

* The salary cap for 2023 and beyond;

* The players’ collective bargaining agreement;

* A club funding model and annual grants for 2023 and beyond;

* And up to $20 million in back pay to players from Covid budget forecasts of dire financial ramifications that were nowhere near as grim as predicted.

Roosters boss Nick Politis was left in the dark. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

The 16 clubs and even members of the NRL’s investment committee – Karl Morris, Nick Politis and Nick Pappas – were all left in the dark over the Brisbane hotel and restaurant.

We’re told these three great businessmen would have preferred other commercial investments rather than a food and tourism business that will suffer if there is another severe Covid outbreak.

The problem for the 16 clubs is the timing.

They are trying to sort their rosters for the next few years but still have no idea how much they can spend.

360 VIEW

Catch you Monday night on NRL 360 on Fox League at 6.30pm with Braith Anasta, Paul Kent and Cooper Cronk to discuss the big State of Origin and NRL stories from the weekend

Originally published as Monday Buzz: Phil Rothfield’s highlights and lowlights, Rabbitohs a premiership contenter again