It’s strange to feel empty and dissatisfied when your team has just won a game. It’s even weirder when your team achieves the rare feat of keeping the opposition scoreless, for the first time in decades. But that is exactly the feeling many Souths fans had after the Monday night victory over Cronulla [May 26].
The lacklustre performance was from right down the bottom of the mixed bag that Souths have offered for most of the year. One could possibly blame the inexplicable watering of the ground (perhaps to encourage a shark or two from nearby Wanda Beach?) but as a spectacle this was undeniably one of the worst games of the year. A depleted Cronulla team, minus Origin stars, as well as the injured Fifita and Carney, should have been easy pickings. Despite having Queenslanders (Te’O and McQueen) and one New South Welshman (Kempsey-born Inglis) on Origin duty, Souths still had quality, experience and the entire Burgess family to call on. Yet Souths were dull and predictable for the most part. Their bash-’em-and-barge tactics won out in the end but, as they found out in the recent Melbourne game, imagination and unpredictability is required to match it against the better teams in the competition.
Now accustomed to consistency in the first part of the season, Souths fans have found the patchy form of their team hard to fathom. Apart from two standout games, in the season opener against Easts (Sydney City if you prefer) and against an in-form Titans a few weeks back, Souths have stumbled and fumbled their way through the season. Their signature strength, set completion, has dribbled away with nearly every player contributing to the rising error tallies. Luck has shone their way a little, particularly in the Brisbane game where, despite Bryson Goodwin’s brain-exploding quick tap decision, the steady boot of Adam Reynolds helped steer Souths to a fortunate win.
Not that it’s all been bad news. The classy Dylan Walker continues to shine. Confident and skilful he shows more and more self-belief each week and is now taking on the defence on both sides, finding gaps and putting others through. Anyone who sat on Erskineville Oval Hill on Saturdays in March in recent years won’t be surprised at Alex Johnson’s emergence. Classy, quick and intelligent, both he and Walker know each other’s games well and can quickly revert to their free running S.G. Ball combination. These are a pair of juniors who, as long as injury eludes them, Souths can build a big future around.
With Isaac Luke injured, Api Korisau has also grabbed his chance to show his best moves – the dart from dummy half, a deceptive side-step and a capacity to back up and support half breaks. And youngsters Kirisome Auva’a and Kyle Turner have shown, to date, they have what it takes at first grade level.
George and Sam Burgess have also stood out. For such a big man, George’s lithe footwork is remarkable and he has bamboozled and terrified up the middle on a number of occasions this year. As the old song goes, “You don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone”, and while Sam Burgess is still with us, every week his enormous work rate, his scything tackles and hit-ups remind Souths fans of what they will be missing in 2015.
The best news is that it is still early days and, despite their inconsistency, Souths have chalked up enough wins to stay well in touch with the top of the ladder. With Isaac Luke and Luke Keary set to return from injury, it’s quite conceivable – if the coach and team bring the unforced error rates back to 2013 standards – that Souths will be well placed to make a claim for this year’s big one.
