Adam Reynolds leads Rabbitohs past Dragons in NRL finals classic
SOUTHS coach Anthony Seibold has wasted no time turning up the heat on the Roosters after Adam Reynolds steered his side to an epic 13-12 win over St George-Illawarra.
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THE boot of Adam Reynolds has landed the NRL a perfectly-timed elixir with South Sydney locking-in a grand final qualifier against arch-enemies the Sydney Roosters.
And Souths coach Anthony Seibold has wasted no time turning up the heat on the “under pressure Roosters” after his side secured an epic 13-12 win over St George-Illawarra in front of 48,188 fans at ANZ Stadium.
On a historic night for Reynolds, the champion Souths halfback became the first player since Billy Smith in 1971 to slot three field goals in a winning finals match.
Reynolds — who scored all of Souths’ 13-points — landed his last of three perfectly-weighted field goals with just 18-seconds remaining in an incredible match that saw the lead change three times in the last eight minutes.
“I’m looking forward to it, it’s not hard getting up for these games,’’ Reynolds said of the preliminary final clash with the Roosters.
“We’ll look at this game, get what we can out of it and move on.
“But if we going to challenge for the top we’re going to have be a lot better than what we were today.”
The NRL has been tormented by a series of ugly headlines over the past month, including most recently those focused on Souths forward Sam Burgess.
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MORE: Brave Dragons have nothing left to give
But Reynolds’ heroics and a game-changing play from rookie Souths forward Cameron Murray to steal back possession when the scores were locked at 12-12 with three-minutes to go, has delivered a marketer’s dream in the shape of the premiership’s oldest and most bitter divide.
More than 100 years of hatred between the Roosters and Rabbitohs will guarantee the code a rare sold-out crowd next Saturday night at what will be the final game at Allianz Stadium before its demolished.
The winner between the Rabbitohs and Roosters will play either Melbourne or Cronulla in this year’s grand final on September 30.
Seibold said his side would take a “nothing to lose” attitude to a battle with a Roosters side that will be without suspended duo Dylan Napa and Latrell Mitchell.
“They’re the minor premiers and have been for four of the past six seasons,’’ Seibold said.
“There’s a fair bit of pressure on them, so we’ll go and give it a red-hot crack.
“They’ve got great depth across their squad, so we’ll focus on the players that are named during the week.
“Before a ball was kicked this year, the Roosters were everyone’s tip to be in the grand final, minor premiers with the recruits they had, so we go over there with nothing to lose and everything to gain.
“I can’t wait.’’
Not for the first time this year, Seibold didn’t use all 17 players with interchange player Hymel Hunt failing to see any game time.
The coach praised his side’s mental edge and the leadership of Inglis following a shocking build-up engulfed by headlines related to an off-field investigation into Burgess.
Inglis, who soldiered on with injured ribs, said he “wouldn’t lose any sleep” after being placed on report for a crusher tackle on Tim Lafai in the first-half.
One-time premiership favourites, the Dragons bowed out of the finals race after leading 12-11 with six minutes remaining.
Dragons half Ben Hunt looked set for a starring role after scoring a try to give the Dragons an 8-2 halftime lead.
Taking a 12-11 advantage with four minutes remaining, the Dragons lost all composure in the final minutes, at one-point inexplicably failing to find a fifth tackle kick.
But in the end, their savage injury toll cost them when it mattered most.
Without Gareth Widdop (shoulder), the Dragons carried Jack De Belin (ankle) virtually on one leg before suffering the crushing loss of Tariq Sims just two minutes into the second-half with a knee injury.
“It stings, but congratulations to Souths,’’ Dragons coach Paul McGregor said.
“We had it, we lost it, we had it, we lost it.
“It came down to the field goal, but I thought it came down to us needing to finish with 17 fit men.
“And when Tariq went off, that put change to that.’’
SOUTH SYDNEY 13 (A Reynolds try A Reynolds 3 goals A Reynolds 3 field goals) bt ST GEORGE ILLAWARRA 12 (B Hunt try Z Lomax 4 goals) at ANZ Stadium. Referee: Gerard Sutton, Ben Cummins. Crowd: 48,188