Parramatta Eels vs South Sydney Rabbitohs Preview
Both sides got back to winning ways last time out, but it is South Sydney who appeal most in this one. They have too many attacking weapons for the Eels and can cover the line and go over their points total.
- The Rabbitohs have won 9 of the last 10 matches against the Eels.
- South Sydney ranks second in the NRL with an average of 29.7 points per game.
- The eels rank 17th in opposition linebreaks, the Rabbits average 6.9 line breaks per game, the second-most in the NRL.
- Alex Johnston has 10 tries in his last 5 games, including 4 tries last match versus Brisbane.
Head to Head
The Rabbits own this contest winning nine of the last 10 matches against the Eels. The latest in Round 24 last year where Souths walked away 20-16 victors at Allianz.
Parramatta Eels Form - Eels End Losing Run
The Eels got a scrappy win against the Raiders 15-12 back in Round 15, but to be honest, it had more to do with Canberra’s attack being flat than Parramatta going up a level.
The match against the Green Machine couldn’t have been any tighter on the stats sheet with a Ronald Volkman field goal before half time being the psychological difference in the victory. The Eels collapsed in the second half letting in two late tries to give the Raiders a sniff, but survived.
The return of Mitchell Moses this week will make a difference, but their defence, which is ranked 16th in the league, still has a lot of questions, despite being solid over the last couple of games against poor attacking sides. A season average of over 30 conceded points per game still hangs over their head.
South Sydney Rabbitohs Form - Strong Win For Souths
Souths broke a three-game losing stretch with a strong performance over the Broncos 48-6 before having their bye last weekend.
Brisbane were missing their Origin stars, however, the attack of the Bunnies was in fine touch with Alex Johnston adding four tries to his try scoring record, giving him 19 for the season and 229 in his career.
After leaking an average of 30 points in their three losses, Wayne Bennet was happy to see that South were able to contain any attack of Brisbane. South had 60% of the ball and outran Brisbane by 618 run metres in the match and had 5 more line breaks than their opponents.