South Sydney blank Wests Tigers in Rabbitohs’ four-year first

The NRL has a new ladder leader for the first time this season after the premiership favourites flexed without getting out of second gear.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – MAY 13: Taane Milne of the Rabbitohs celebrates scoring a try with teammates during the round 11 NRL match between South Sydney Rabbitohs and Wests Tigers at Accor Stadium on May 13, 2023 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Brett Hemmings/Getty Images)

And just like that, the NRL has a new premiership leader.

After the ladder has been topped by the Brisbane Broncos since round 3, South Sydney have taken the top spot on the ladder for the first time in four years in a show of the side’s sublime form.

While Saturday’s 20-0 win over the Wests Tigers was a mismatch on paper, the cellar-dwellers put in a resolute defensive effort to keep the match close for as long as they could.

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The win was the Rabbitohs’ sixth straight as the side continues to flex its muscles, while the Broncos have come back to the pack with two losses in the last three rounds.

Souths have been blowing teams off the park in recent weeks but this was surprisingly tight for 60 minutes before Latrell Mitchell took control of the contest to make it six wins on the trot.

But while the Rabbitohs weren’t at their attacking best, it’s a stark message to the rest of the competition that Souths mean business in 2023, putting the Tigers away comfortably in the defensive battle.

It looked for a long time like this would be the lowest-scoring match of the season with Taane Milne’s converted try the only points in a dour first half, but the winger added a second after the break before Mitchell bullied his way over to seal it.

The Rabbitohs are on fire. Photo by Brett Hemmings/Getty Images

Milne’s two tries were where his big day began, as he claimed three line breaks and ran 25 times for 256m, while his centre Campbell Graham had 19 runs for 193m as well as a line break, line break assist and try assist, as the Rabbitohs’ right edge continue to flourish.

While Souths coach Jason Demetriou said the match may have been a chance for his side to be flat after three matches at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium in the four matches leading up to the match, he was happy with his side and credited the Tigers for hanging in with the red hot Rabbitohs.

“It was a contest, statistically, the Tigers have been challenging teams,” Demetriou said.

“I feel like we stayed really patient and I spoke at halftime about keep on protecting our try line and have that defensive focus. And if we got one we’d get two.

“Just really happy how they handled that.”

Demetriou said in the past it would have been a game the side dropped but he was happy with where the side is.

For the Tigers, it again showed their lack of attacking punch as the side will more than likely stay on the bottom of the ladder.

The Tigers did everything they could. Photo by Brett Hemmings/Getty Images

The Tigers were held scoreless for the first time since 2021 when they were belted 38-0 by the Bulldogs in the final game of the year, and their attack hasn’t improved since then.

After finishing last in points scored in 2022 — a season the club also claimed its first wooden spoon — they’ve scored just 136 points after 10 games.

To put it in context, after his 12 point haul on Saturday, Latrell Mitchell went to the top of the NRL pointscorers list on 115 points, just 21 points less than the Tigers have scored as a team.

They can at least take solace from the fact that they matched it with the league’s top team for an hour before the Bunnies kicked clear at the end.

With Martin Gabor, NCA Newswire