South Sydney found their attacking mojo to destroy the Sydney Roosters in a National Rugby League massacre at the Sydney Football Stadium yesterday.
With halves John Sutton and Chris Sandow inspiring them and winger Nathan Merritt bagging a hat-trick, Souths piled on nine tries to two in their season opener
against a woeful Roosters.
Man-of-the-match Sutton had a hand in four tries, two with pinpoint cross-field chips, while veterans Colin Best and Rhys Wesser each scored on debut for their new club.
Merritt scored two first-half four-pointers, including a 95m intercept, and one five minutes after the break to shatter the Roosters' spirit.
The livewire Rabbitohs scored five first-half tries and led 30-6 at the break as the Roosters continually made errors coming out their own end and fell off tackles.
Souths rushed to a 12-0 lead within 10 minutes after Best embarrassingly stood up Sia Soliola and then Sutton stood and offloaded cleverly to Merritt.
The Roosters looked briefly like they might get back into it when Braith Anasta chimed on to a one-handed offload from Setaimata Sa to make it 12-6. But the tide turned with a controversial 23rd-minute try by Wesser awarded to Souths by video referee Sean Hampstead.
The conversion opened up an 18-6 lead.
Sutton laid on a pinpoint chip for Fetuli Talanoa to athletically grab and plant while brushing the sideline in the 26th minute, before Merritt intercepted an Anasta pass in the 36th minute and ran the length of the field.
Merritt got his third when he latched on to another perfect Sutton bomb to make it 34-6.
Interchange player Jake Friend burrowed over for the Roosters in the 59th minute to narrow the margin slightly, but Talanoa got his second two minutes later.
It was 46-12 when Eddy Pettybourne crashed through some soft defence in the 66th minute and the Rabbitohs reached the half-century when Sandow chipped and regathered in the 71st.
Sandow also booted five goals from seven attempts, while hooker Issac Luke kicked three from three.
* * *
A wonderful 80m run by William Zillman sealed the Gold Coast Titans' win over the Newcastle Knights at Skilled Park yesterday.
He has been dubbed "TP" - or total package - by his new teammates
and he certainly looked it as he ran around some tired Knights defence to score the matchwinner.
With the Knights on the attack, Titans winger Esi Tonga cleverly regathered a kick and set Zillman loose on a fantastic run that ended under the posts in the 72nd minute.
After coming back from 14-0 down to lead 16-14 at halftime, the Titans went further ahead in the 44th minute when Scott Prince's dummy baffled Ben Rogers and the Gold Coast skipper waltzed over for a try.
The Knights drew first blood through Fiji's World Cup star winger Akuila Uate's strong run in the seventh minute and appeared to be laughing when they led 14-0 by the 29th minute after captain Kurt Gidley's penalty.
Then the Titans were sparked by a man who believes he is unwanted at the club - hooker Nathan Friend, whose first-half performance led to three tries in six minutes.
- AAP
South Sydney found their attacking mojo to destroy the Sydney Roosters in a National Rugby League massacre at the Sydney Football Stadium yesterday.
With halves John Sutton and Chris Sandow inspiring them and winger Nathan Merritt bagging a hat-trick, Souths piled on nine tries to two in their season opener
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