Expect “far tougher” Bunnies in run-home to finals, Damien Cook warns NRL rivals

Damien Cook has issued a warning to South Sydney’s glamorous NRL title rivals ⁠— the Storm and Panthers and Penrith can expect a “much tougher” Rabbitohs outfit heading into the finals, especially when it comes to defensive efforts.

The Rabbitohs have been nigh-unstoppable in attack this season, carving through opponents with ease and clocking up 689 points in just 21 games.

Wayne Bennett’s title challengers have come a little unstuck on the other end of the playing field a few times this season though, capitulating 56 points to the Panthers back in round 11, and copping a sobering 50-0 defeat at the hands of the Melbourne Storm at AAMI Park just a fortnight before in round 9.

Defence, it seems, has not really been South’s strong suit.

That’s an issue, of course, considering the age-old adage is “defence wins premierships,” and that seems to be holding true again in 2021.

The Storm and Panthers, who sit on 19 and 18 wins respectively atop the NRL standings, have allowed just 258 and 252 points against them. It’s a far throw away from the Bunnies, who have conceded 400 in their 21-game campaign so far.

That’s set to change this week, however, promises Souths hooker Damien Cook, with “far tougher” Rabbitohs set to take the field against the Panthers on Friday.

“We’ve definitely got a different defensive mindset now. We’ve changed a few things around in our structure and how we defend as well,” he said.

“I think that’s been working well for us… this will be the biggest test for us, so far, and we’ll be able to actually see how good this defensive process we’ve got goes this weekend against a quality side like the Panthers before we go into the finals.”

Cook explained that after his team’s Dubbo humiliation, and the Storm spanking just two weeks prior, all the players sat down and agreed things had to change.

“That [the Dubbo defeat] definitely did it,” he said.

“Especially the Penrith and the Melbourne game, we lost to big scores. We had to make a quick change. Hopefully, this weekend we can see the improvement.”

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“It’s not a “complete overhaul,” Cook added, but it’s close.

“I won’t give away too much, but it’s just a few different things. We gave the Panthers too much space and they tore us apart. A few weeks ago we were just letting in some simple tries. If we got a penalty or an error against us, a team getting a repeat set on us, they were seeming to score pretty easily 

“We needed to pick up our resilience on our line and protecting our line,” the Souths hooker added, “and I think that’s been a big improvement for us now.”

The Rabbitohs’ new defensive upgrades haven’t changed one thing though, Cook did add when speaking to the NRL media; Melbourne and Penrith still remain the kings of the 2021 season, and Souths are very aware of that fact.

“I still do believe Storm and Panthers are the top two teams.”

“We’re playing some good footy, but we’ve got to remember… Penrith did give us a touch-up last time we played. I think it was a pretty good sign to see how well they were still playing when they lost their key players. They still won [a lot of] those games as well, so I think it’s a great sign of their depth,” he said.

“We’ve done the same, we’ve been missing a few players here and there and we’ve had guys come up and do their job. We’ll see where we’re both at this week.”

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