The 2022 NRL season isn’t far away so Oscar Pannifex and Jason Oliver are previewing all 16 clubs before Round 1. Up next, it’s the South Sydney Rabbitohs as they look to improve on an impressive 2021 campaign.
South Sydney Rabbitohs 2022 Season Preview:
- The 2021 NRL Season In 200 Words
- Predicted Profile In 2022
- Breakout Season Candidates: Campbell Graham, Keaon Koloamatangi
- Sections Wishlist: Paulo on the wing, Isaiah Tass
- SuperCoach Game Theory
- Notepad: The Right Edge
- Predictions: Peak, Pass & Pit
The 2021 NRL Season In 200 Words
We’re looking back at the South Sydney Rabbitohs 2021 Season Review for a quick recap on how it all played out.
It wasn’t the swansong Adam Reynolds or Wayne Bennett wanted but it was pretty damned close. South Sydney finally broke their preliminary final curse with an appearance in the 2021 Grand Final, falling painfully short to the Penrith Panthers in a 14-12 thriller.
Latrell Mitchell’s transition into the fullback role continued to trigger debate in the early rounds but by season’s end most people realised what Mitchell can bring to the #1 jersey. His soft hands out the back of Souths’ backline shifts proved almost impossible to defend and with the ball in hand he is nothing short of destructive. Mitchell’s combination with five-eighth Cody Walker, in particular, is a joy to watch and the pair will be tasked with leading Souths into the post-Adam Reynolds era.
Souths’ unheralded forward pack deserves special mention after a compelling 2021 season. Tom Burgess, Cameron Murray and Keaon Koloamatangi all had career years while the role players around them (g’day Mark Nicholls) more than did their jobs from week to week. Jaydn Su’A is the only notable omission to this pack in ‘22 meaning this should be one of Souths’ strengths again next season.
Rookie playmaker Blake Taafe filled in admirably for Mitchell throughout the finals series and has marked himself as a player to watch in 2022.
Predicted Profile In 2022
What will the Rabbitohs attack look like this season? We take a stab at profiling their playing style ahead of Round 1 of the 2022 NRL season.
You can only take so much from a pre-season trial game, but die-hard fans will always take more. We saw close to a full-strength South Sydney side in this year’s Charity Shield and for me, there were two key takeaways from this game with the regular season approaching.
1. Lachlan Ilias can kick a footy
It’s the most important role he needs to fill with Adam Reynolds departed and Lachlan Ilias’ first showing of 2022 was promising. He found the grass with a number of long kicks and got Souths out of trouble with a clutch 20/40 midway through the first half.
Cody Walker put Jaxson Paulo over for a try a few tackles later.
If Ilias can be consistent with the boot this season it will free up Walker and Latrell Mitchell to scheme in attack. These two can both put a short kick in but neither are noted long kickers and it’s where Ilias needs to be effective to begin the season. From what we’ve seen so far, Ilias spent all summer kicking the pill and he looks ready to go.
2. Cameron Murray & Latrell Mitchell will be heavily involved in attack
Aside from Damien Cook at dummy-half, Walker was the lone creative attacking player on the field for South Sydney in the Charity Shield. The Dragons numbered up on him accordingly in defence and he still managed to score one try and set up another. He’s a freakish attacking talent but even Walker will need support in 2022. Ilias did a sound job straightening the attack on his inside but it was obvious Walker was doing it pretty much on his own in the Charity Shield.
That all changes with Murray and Mitchell back in the side.
I’m expecting Murray to take on a bulk of the playmaking duties around the ruck in 2022. He’ll still get through his share of the dirty work but Murray can distribute through the middle in Reynolds’ absence. We saw Victor Radley triple his touches per game to nurse Kyle Flanagan into first-grade a few years ago and I think we’ll see a similar thing with Murray and Ilias in 2022.
He can play at the line like a genuine half and this action against the Broncos last year will work just as well with Walker sweeping around into Reynolds’ position here.
As for Mitchell, his talent speaks for itself. Most of his involvements in 2021 were quick hands out the back of shape but I think we might see Mitchell fill more of a playmaking role this season. He can distribute just as effectively as he can finish in attack and the more Mitchell plays on the ball, the more problems he creates for the defence.
He can pop up closer to the ruck and use his destructive ball-running much like Tom Trbojevic did for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles last year. Alternatively, Mitchell is still the best centre in the NRL despite not playing the position and with clean, early ball in centre-like spots on the field, the Rabbitohs have another area to exploit.
Mitchell and Walker spent a lot of time linking up on the left edge but there is a chance they split the field a little bit more often with Walker drifting to the right. Good luck to the defence picking which side they should fill up when looking left and right and seeing those two.
~ Oscar & Jason
Breakout Season Candidates
Some started to breakout in 2021 while others are ripe and ready to announce themselves to the NRL in 2022. Oscar and Jason highlight one player they think will take a leap this season.
Oscar: Campbell Graham
The obvious candidate here is Lachlan Ilias but I think Campbell Graham is in for a big year in 2022.
At time of writing it looks like he’s staying on the right edge which is the safe selection. Since beginning the transition from wing to centre, Graham’s defensive reads and technique have improved as you’d hope and he’s the most experienced option to shore up that edge for Souths in 2022.
In the past that has threatened to hamper his attacking involvement. Graham still has great numbers from his two seasons in the centres – 22 tries, nine try assists and an average 123 running metres is nothing to sneeze at – but in a South Sydney outfit that heavily favours their left edge in attack, Graham hasn’t been the go-to guy in good ball. I think that might change a little in 2022.
Cody Walker and Latrell Mitchell are still going to spend plenty of time on the left this year, but I’m on the lookout for concerted efforts to bring Graham into the game in attack. He’s an absolute giant who is awfuly hard to stop close to the line and his talents in the air are far from fully utilised at NRL level. Souths could do worse than try to emulate the way Nathan Cleary and Stephen Crichton combined for the Panthers in 2021 with an array of short-range attacking kicks that target the opposition half.
Still, at just 22 years of age and already with 90 NRL games to his name, Graham is clearly a guy Souths have invested in long-term. It was only a matter of time before he became a strike player in this backline and I think 2022 might be the year it begins.
Jason: Keaon Koloamatangi
He has all of the potential in the world, and while he has started to be recognised as one of the better backrowers in the NRL, this looks like the season for Keaon Koloamatangi to really break out.
The 23-year-old featured prominently on South Sydney’s lethal left edge but it wasn’t uncommon to see him slot into the middle or over on the right edge throughout his 73 minutes per game in 2021.
He filled the left edge role exceptionally well. Benji Marshall called him one of the best hole-runners in the NRL, quite the rap for somebody so young. However, he was primarily a hole-runner. He hit gaps and acted as a decoy for Cody Walker and Latrell Mitchell to work their magic. It’s his move to the right side, alongside a rookie halfback, that we will start to see the different ways Koloamatangi can impact the attack.
His pre-pass movement is already very good. Ilias will be looking to hit Koloamatangi and isolate him onto smaller defenders all season. A strong carrier with excellent footwork, I’m expecting Koloamatangi to double his three tries from last season now that he is more of a feature of the Rabbitohs attack.
Section Wishlist
Whether it be likely or unlikely, good or bad, Jason and Oscar have a couple of players on their selection wishlist in 2022.
Oscar: Jaxson Paulo on the wing
It’s been a bit of a slow burn for Paulo since his debut in 2020. There’s been moments of brilliance scattered throughout his 25 first-grade games to date but even Paulo would admit he’s far from guaranteed a position week-to-week.
Most of his NRL appearances to date have been on the right wing. It’s a difficult position to defend in given most teams favour a left-side offence and Paulo gets a pass mark for me in this department. He isn’t lightning quick and will need to rely on improved positional play and smarts to become an elite defender, but at 192cm, 101kgs and 22 years of age, Paulo has all the attributes to be a career winger.
He uses his size effectively in yardage (average 110 running meters per game) and is a reliable finisher on the end of Souths’ backline shifts (13 tries from 25 games), albeit without the ceiling of the elite attacking wingers in the comp. Paulo on the wing also means Josh Mansour becomes a reliable backup rather than a regular first-grader – probably what you want at this point in his career.
All this makes Paulo sitting in the box seat for the vacant left centre position such a head-scratcher.
His form there in the pre-season trials was hardly convincing and there hasn’t been much talk of an alternative, which probably says more about Souths’ roster than Paulo himself. Taane Milne had some nice touches in the centres last year and against St George but is only a fringe player himself, and his missed tackle count there is concerning. Jed Cartwright and Michael Chee-Kam profile as stop-gap options while Isaiah Tass (more on him below) is the riskier choice.
It’s my biggest question mark for Souths going into 2022 and it won’t take long for the media to pick up on how important Gagai was to the Rabbitohs last year. For now, though, moving Paulo from the wing isn’t the solution.
Jason: Isaiah Tass
Isaiah Tass played 15 games for the Souths Logan Magpies in the Queensland Cup last season and showed some touches of class throughout. An attacking threat every time he touches the ball, he scored nine tries and handed out six try assists playing in the centres. He picked up 135 running metres per game and broke 38 tackles throughout the season, too.
He’s a promising carrier of the football and has displayed some handy footwork that is easy to picture translating into the NRL.
I like seeing players complete a bit of an apprenticeship in reserve grade before being elevated into the NRL side. More clubs should be using Queensland and New South Wales Cup teams to develop first grade-ready players instead of throwing them out there at the earliest opportunity.
Tass looks ready and with the uncertainty and lack of depth at the position, should see some time out on the field in 2022.
SuperCoach Game Theory
RLW is venturing into the fantasy space this year and Oscar will be keeping a rolling watch list from week-to-week. Not everything translates from field to fantasy but if something catches my eye or there’s value hiding somewhere, it’ll go on the list.
Latrell Mitchell ($721,000) – Increased involvement in attacking structures, added leadership responsibilities, probable goal-kicking duties – there’s a reason everywhere you look to get Mitchell in your side this year. He won’t be as consistent as others with a similar pricetag (Tedesco will cost you just 50K more) but with 2% ownership and a ceiling even he can’t see yet, I’m happy to take the occasional lows with the dizzying highs.
Lachlan Ilias ($205,200) – If you haven’t got him in your side yet then you’ve probably got your reasons. He won’t be an elite SC scorer but he’ll make some steady cash playing 80 minutes each week and will pick up a few attacking stats in an elite attacking system along the way. At 200K it’s a no brainer.
Campbell Graham ($494,900) – Awkwardly priced but as I covered earlier in this piece I think Graham has plenty of upside about him in 2022. He should take an elevated role in Souths’ attack with Dane Gagai gone and he’ll always be effective in yardage. Whether it’s enough to justify picking him over a Zac Lomax ($496,800) or a Jack Bird ($498,600) at a similar price is what I’m still weighing up.
Davvy Moale ($205,100) – One of a few rookies on my watchlist for South Sydney. Moale is a big powerful front rower who I’m expecting to step into Mark Nicholls-like role next season. How much game time he gets this year will be the issue for SC, but he’s certainly one to watch out for. Will get some minutes during the Origin period and could earn himself a bench role to finish the season if he plays his cards right.
Isaiah Tass ($175,400) – My solution to the Dane Gagai problem. A few niggles kept him out of the trials but his QRL stats are superb and he’s got a neat highlights reel on YouTube. He’s got big shoes to fill but I like his upside moreso than the thought of Paulo, Milne or Chee-Kam having an extended stint there in 2022.
2022 NRL Notepad
Jason has pulled the wrapper off a fresh notepad and has a few pages filled already with the 2022 NRL season in mind.
The Right Edge
Oscar and I have spent a lot of time talking about Cody Walker drifting over to the right side of the field across the last two NRL seasons. The more he floats over there, the more we’re talking about the variation it provides to South Sydney’s left-heavy attack.
As Walker looked to the right side in the Charity Shield match, I got excited. I’ve already covered Keaon Koloamatangi above and that feeds into my excitement here.
The Rabbitohs left edge is going to function well regardless of who is on the edge. Koloamatangi was excellent there last year, but Walker and Latrell Mitchell did a lot of the damage with Dane Gagai and Alex Johnston always in a position to capitalise.
In Walker’s Charity Shield try last week, though, we can see how the right side might run a little differently with Koloamatangi taking on more responsibility.
Ilias does an excellent job of engaging his man and isolating Koloamatangi onto Ben Hunt. Walker’s presence out the back takes the two-in defender to create a two-v-one overlap on the edge.
It took a superb tackle from Hunt to drag down Koloamatangi running that overs line but the defence couldn’t organise their numbers quick enough to stop Walker from crashing over.
The Rabbitohs attack won’t be quite as dangerous without Adam Reynolds. While he didn’t put up the biggest numbers for a halfback, he did a lot of the groundwork ahead of Walker’s 33 try assists last season. Souths will need to make a few changes to how they use the ball and I think those changes might come down the right more than they do the left in 2022.
Peak, Pass, Pit
Oscar and Jason give their predicted peak for the Rabbitohs in 2022 along with a pass mark and worst-case scenario.
Peak
Premiers: A preliminary finals exit feels more likely at time of writing, but with Cody Walker, Latrell Mitchell and Cameron Murray anything is possible. Souths still have a great forward pack and two of the best-attacking players in the competition. We’d need to see more from Damien Cook and maybe a breakout season from an outside back but going one better isn’t out of the question for Souths in 2022. ~OP
Premiers: Adam Reynolds is a big loss but Cody Walker, Latrell Mitchell, Cameron Murray, Damien Cook, Jai Arrow and Keaon Koloamatangi still remain on a team that finished an intercept short of winning the 2021 NRL Grand Final. I certainly can’t rule them out of making another run in 2022. Especially if Mitchell can behave himself and feature in the finals. ~JO
Pass
Top 6: With Melbourne, Sydney and Penrith all but locked into my top four, I’m running out of room for my beloved Bunnies. The loss of Wayne Bennett and Adam Reynolds will hurt but replacing Dane Gagai may be more difficult still and the Origin period will hit the Rabbitohs hard in 2022. In saying that, they will still expect to finish in the top six and I do too. ~OP
16 Wins: The Sea Eagles finished 4th on the ladder with 16 wins last season. With a loss of Reynolds and the introduction of a rookie coach, matching Manly’s 16 wins to end up at 4th or 5th after Round 25 is an achievable goal. ~JO
Pit
Finals, Week 1: It’s never easy taking over from the Master Coach and the loss of a club captain and premiership-winning halfback is no small matter either. If Souths’ stars suffer from an Origin-period hangover or go down with a few injuries the Rabbitohs are a good chance of finishing in the bottom half of the Top 8. From there it’s just one off-night away from a Week 1 finals exit.~OP
Finals, Week 2: This team is making the finals. A lot is being made of Reynolds leaving but this side is still stacked with talent and a lot of it will improve further in 2022, as well. Regardless of whether they finish in the top or bottom half of the eight, they should at least play two games in September. ~JO