Adam Reynolds stars as South Sydney upset Sydney Roosters 26-16 at SCG

An Adam Reynolds masterclass and some below par handling has helped the Rabbitohs score an upset 26-16 win over the Roosters at a rain-sodden SCG.

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Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson called it for what it was, and Wayne Bennett agreed.

The difference at South Sydney under Wayne Bennett as opposed to Anthony Seibold is that the shackles have come off.

And in 2019 classy halves Adam Reynolds and Cody Walker will be given a licence to play with more freedom.

Halfback Reynolds was absolutely superb in orchestrating a comprehensive 26-16 win over the reigning premiers on a slippery and soggy Sydney Cricket Ground to kick off the Bennett era at the Bunnies in fine style.

It was an ill-tempered and physical match. Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images.

CLASSY HALVES

Cooper Cronk and Luke Keary deserved all the credit they got for leading the Roosters to a premiership.

But it’s a new season and going on what we saw from Reynolds and Walker, the direction the super coach is going to push the style of football Souths play will benefit his halves most of all.

While Reynolds’ kicking game was immaculate, setting up two tries with pin-point kicks that ricocheted off the goal posts, rival coach Robinson also spotted a big change.

Asked if Souths played the way he expected, Robinson said: “Yeah. They have got more freedom in the way that they play. They were very structured last year. You could read it. They played both sides of the ball. I would say left and right side. And then definitely Reynolds being in on a night like tonight was a big bonus and I thought he pulled the strings pretty well.”

Bennett agreed it is no use locking up there talent with structure.

“We have very talented halves and we have a very good fullback and an extremely good hooker so my job is to free them up and let them play their football,” Bennett said.

“Not to try and put them in a box or play with structure. That is detrimental to the way they play. They have a freedom to play and that is what they bring.

“That is the beauty of what makes them the players they are.

“We have a lot of improvement in us yet.”

Cronk and Keary also had their moments but they will walk away knowing defending their title is not going to be as easy as the bookmakers might have you believe, especially when their team turns over as much possession as they did.

Reynolds controlled proceedings beautifully. AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts.

GI v Latrell

Melbourne Cups aren’t won in March and neither are NRL premierships.

For all the concern about Greg Inglis’ fitness after a summer of knee complications and speculation about a lack of motivation, the 32-year-old veteran was pretty solid with his first up performance.

Inglis narrowly missed an early try when he was denied by some desperate defence from Mitchell and Luke Keary. Inglis was given an early mark late in the match but by that time we’d seen enough to know his season is going to be a work in progress.

“Greg needed what he did tonight,” Bennett said.

“He was underdone in terms of preparation compared to everyone else but he has played a lot of football and he knows how to get the job done and he showed that tonight.”

Meanwhile, Mitchell just continues to grow as a force, with the knack of producing the big moment at just the right time. He came up with one big one-on-one steal that led to a try. But overall, it wasn’t one of his better games, and his frustration certainly showed.

“I think we all would have liked to play a bit better,” Robinson said, not pinning the blame on any individual.

Mitchell struggled to get involved. Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images.

HOW GOOD ARE RADLEY AND MURRAY?

Victor Radley and Cameron Murray are two of the most exciting young forwards in the NRL and their head-to-head match-up last night certainly didn’t let anyone down.

Murray was absolutely outstanding finishing with 145m and 26 tackles, as well as scoring a first half try off a Reynolds kick that was the reward for his effort.

Although Radley finished on the wrong side of the scoreboard, he wouldn’t have lost any of his supporters.

There was some concern for Sam Burgess who left the field late after copping a high shot from Mitchell but Bennett said the tough Englishman was okay.

“It was a pretty fair hit in the head he got. Anyone else they would have been knocked out I reckon,” Bennett said.

The Roosters title defence began with a loss. Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

SOUTHS’ BENCH A WORRY

One thing Bennett demands from his teams is discipline,especially early in the season when it is often the difference between winning and losing.

The Rabbitohs’ got home on the back of it but there were some nervous moments early.

Coming off the bench, Mark Nicholls and Liam Knights came up with a couple of costly errors, and they won’t want to make a habit of it.

Nicholls fell asleep at marker that opened the door for Jake Friend to barge over from dummy half for a soft try, while a couple of clumsy handling errors from both would not have impressed the new boss.

SOUTH SYDNEY 26 (S Burgess C Graham A Johnston C Murray C Walker tries A Reynolds 3 goals) bt SYDNEY ROOSTERS 16 (M Aubusson J Friend D Tupou tries L Mitchell 2 goals) at Sydney Cricket Ground. Referee: Gavin Badger, Grant Atkins. Crowd: 24,527