Monday Buzz: Another South Sydney Rabbitohs staffer quits after 17 years at club

The disunity continues at the South Sydney Rabbitohs with another key staffer leaving the club – and indications are it wasn’t an amicable exit.

There is more drama at the Rabbitohs this week. Picture: Getty

Sports Editor-at-Large Phil Rothfield reveals his highlights and lowlights from the weekend of sport

HIGHLIGHT

Nathan Cleary keeps getting better and better. Now heading for his fourth straight grand final. One day we’ll be talking about him in the same breath as Andrew Johns, Johnathan Thurston, Peter Sterling, Ricky Stuart or Alfie Langer.

LOWLIGHT

Ryan Papenhuyzen and his shocking injury on Friday night at Suncorp, continuing a terrible run of bad luck for the Storm superstar.

Ryan Papenhuyzen suffered another serious injury over the weekend. Picture: NRL Photos

SPOTTED

A photograph made its way onto social media on Friday of Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo having lunch with Manly’s assistant coach Jim Dymock. There was immediate speculation they were talking about a job on the coaching staff at Belmore. Not so. Dymock is under contract for another two years at Manly and is staying on the northern beaches.

SPOTTED

Latrell Mitchell and his family on the hill at Leichhardt Oval on Saturday to watch the South Sydney Rabbitohs’ NSW Cup team beat the North Sydney Bears to qualify for the grand final. Exciting teenage winger Tyrone Munro scored two tries.

SHOOSH

We’ve had a number of emails over the weekend from disgruntled South Sydney supporters after Adam Reynolds produced another blinder for the Broncos against Storm. They are all asking a very legitimate question … if the club could not afford to keep Adam Reynolds because of salary cap pressure, how did they find the money to sign Jack Wighton?

Adam Reynolds has been brilliant since leaving the Rabbitohs. Pictures: Adam Head

PHYSIO QUITS

We phoned South Sydney Rabbitohs’ chief physio Eddie Farah over the weekend about his departure from the club after 17 years. All we got was a ‘no comment’, indicating it was not the most amicable exit.

360 VIEW

Catch you on NRL 360 on Fox League at 6.30pm with Braith Anasta, Gorden Tallis and Brent Read to review the first weekend of the NRL finals.

BELLAMY’S BIGGEST MISTAKE

Craig Bellamy is up there with Wayne Bennett and Jack Gibson among the greatest coaches in rugby league history.

Over 21 seasons at Melbourne Storm he’s made the finals on 20 occasions. The one year he missed out Storm were stripped of their competition points for salary cap cheating.

In the last 17 years, they’ve missed the top four only three times, once for the salary cap rort.

Justin Olam’s omission has been notable for the Storm. Picture: Getty

No other coach has such a phenomenal record of such sustained excellence. It makes it difficult to be questioning the super coach’s team selections.

However … why is it that centre Justin Olam can’t get a start for the finals?

This guy was the 2021 Dally M centre of the year and is one of the toughest footballers in the competition, a player who thrives on pressure.

He plays on Storm’s left side where the Broncos ran riot on Friday night at Suncorp Stadium.

Melbourne Storm lost the game on Friday night because the big three – Harry Grant, Cameron Munster and Jahrome Hughes – all played poorly.

Yet it was their left side defence that let them down. Poor Young Tonumaipea had a tough night. He missed six tackles in the position where Olam usually patrols so effectively.

Mind you he wasn’t the only one missing them. All up Storm had 44 missed tackles.

They were all way off their game. Team selections on Tuesday will be interesting. Bellamy has lost Ryan Papenhuyzen and Xavier Coates.

Surely Olam has to come back into the side for the match against the Roosters when they have no more second chances.