Rise and rise of the Rabbitohs as a great super club set to catch all other NRL teams on the hop

THE South Sydney Rabbitohs are fast becoming an unstoppable force in rugby league. Just like Manchester United in soccer, the Dallas Cowboys in NFL or the New York Yankees in baseball.

Russell Crowe and James Packer at the National Centre of Indigenous Excellence in Redfern announcing a new sponsorship deal for South Sydney. Packer's Crown Resorts will be the Club's Major Home Corporate Partner in a new three year deal which starts in 2014 once the current deal with The Star expires.

THE South Sydney Rabbitohs are fast becoming an unstoppable force in rugby league.

Just like Manchester United in soccer, the Dallas Cowboys in NFL or the New York Yankees in baseball.

News that James Packer wants a slice of the action will build the Rabbitohs brand to even greater national heights and awareness.

Collingwood in the AFL has always been Australia’s best known footy club. They have 80,000 members, Eddie Maguire and a long, proud history.

Now the Rabbitohs have Hollywood superstar Russell Crowe, Packer and a premiership.

Russell Crowe and James Packer wearing Rabbitohs hats at Lords for the Ashes.

They have almost 35,000 members, which is three times as many as some of their rivals.

Packer’s involvement is a beautiful touch in that it was his late father Kerry who once saved the club from bankruptcy by writing a cheque for $750,000 just days before the leagues club doors were about to be closed.

Souths are now on the verge of becoming the new powerhouse of the NRL, both on and off the footy field.

They are a super club and there is no stopping them. Not with the profile and power of Packer and Crowe.

They share the appeal that attracts big name players such as Greg Inglis, the Burgess boys, Glenn Stewart and the best bunch of local juniors in the club’s history.

It’s a far cry from the 1990s, when superstars simply refused to go there because of doubts about even getting paid.

In recent years there has been a remarkable turnaround. The club was already a profitable business before the grand final triumph.

Plus they’ve been able to do it without the support of poker machines and a leagues club.

They are the benchmark for every other club in the game.

Kerry Packer once tipped in $750,000 to help save Souths.

Sponsorship, merchandise, corporate sales, crowds and membership will go through the roof as a result of Sunday night’s spectacular grand final triumph.

Throw in a whole new generation of young fans, not just from the backstreets of Redfern, but right across the country.

They are no longer the desperates or the down-and-outs. The battlers or the broken.

They are building a dynasty like rugby league has never seen before.

The Rabbitohs truly are the pride of the league again.