South Sydney Rabbitohs vs Sydney Roosters Verdict
The Roosters are nowhere near full strength but a +22.5 handicap line is still too big to ignore. The Game Total over 54.5 points is also backed along with Rex Bassingthwaighte and David Fifita as anytime tryscorer plays.
- South Sydney should win, but a 22.5-point line is enormous when the Roosters' adjusted side will be full of players fighting for a first-grade impression.
- The Roosters' full-strength season profile was much closer than this market, and while the resting changes are major, they do not automatically turn this rivalry into a 30-point walkover.
- Souths have the ladder motivation, but if they build a lead, protecting key players before finals could become more important than chasing margin.
- The attacking ingredients still point to points, with Souths loaded across the park and the Roosters likely to lean into an open, aggressive game script.
Head to Head Stats
The Roosters have won four of the last five games against South Sydney, including a 26-18 result earlier this season and a 36-6 win in Round 27 last year. South Sydney's only win in that run was a 20-14 result at home in 2025.
The margins have been mixed, with the Roosters winning by 30 and 42 in 2 of those games but the other three matchups finishing by 8, 8 and 6 points.
South Sydney Rabbitohs Form
South Sydney locked in finals footy with a 42-22 win over the Titans last week, but it was not as clean as the final score suggests.
The Rabbitohs led 28-0 after 26 minutes, then let Gold Coast back to 28-16 before Tallis Duncan and Alex Johnston iced the game late.
Cameron Murray was huge through the middle with 2 tries, 129 Run Metres, 6 tackle breaks and 2 try assists, while David Fifita produced 158 Run Metres, 8 tackle breaks and a long-range try. That is exactly the kind of edge strike that makes Fifita a fair anytime play again here.
The Rabbitohs have averaged 26.8 points scored across their last 5 games and remain one of the most dangerous attacking teams in the league.
The concern is that their defence has still been leaky, and Wayne Bennett will know this is the wrong week to burn energy chasing a huge margin if the game is already safe.
Sydney Roosters Form
The Roosters lost 26-12 to the Dolphins last week, and the bigger issue was the injury to Sam Walker. They led 6-0 early before the Dolphins took control, and Walker's syndesmosis injury has now been followed by a sweeping team-list reset ahead of finals.
This is not the normal Roosters side. James Tedesco, Daly Cherry-Evans, Reece Robson, Mark Nawaqanitawase, Billy Smith, Robert Toia, Naufahu Whyte and Siua Wong have all been left out or rested, while Daniel Tupou returns after a shoulder injury.
Cody Ramsey starts at fullback, Rex Bassingthwaighte is on the wing, Reece Foley and Toby Rodwell are in the halves, and several bench players are chasing opportunities.
That makes the Roosters difficult to rate, but not impossible to back with a big start. They have averaged 30.0 points across their last five games at full strength, and the club system is still strong enough to produce effort and field position.
The question is not whether they are the better team this week, it is whether Souths really need to beat them by 23 or more.