Latest news with #SouthSydney
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Damning detail about Latrell as calls grow for 'investigation' into Souths crisis
Phil Rothfield has called for an 'investigation' into South Sydney's injury crisis, and a damning detail about Latrell Mitchell sums it up perfectly. The Rabbitohs have been absolutely decimated by injuries in 2025, and currently sit last on the NRL ladder with six rounds remaining in the regular season. Wayne Bennett is staring down the barrel of his first-ever wooden spoon, but there's not much he can do without so many of his star players. Captain Cameron Murray hasn't played all year after rupturing his Achilles in the pre-season, while superstars Mitchell, Cody Walker and Campbell Graham have spent large chunks of the year on the sideline. Mitchell recently tore his calf on the training paddock, which has become all-too common for the Rabbitohs. Questions have previously been raised about the club's new training facilities at Heffron Park, which has replaced Redfern Oval as the team's base. And speaking on Monday, veteran journalist Rothfield suggested it can't be a coincidence. Rothfield pointed out that a lot of the Rabbitohs' injuries have occurred at training - including Murray's and two for Mitchell this year. 'Souths need an investigation into their injuries, they really do," he said on Sky Sports radio. "Their sports science, their high-performance. A lot of them have happened at training. Whoever on Souths high performance staff four years ago advised their recruitment team that Adam Reynolds was a risk longer than a year has made a gigantic error in my view.' Rothfield highlighted a damning stat that Broncos veteran Reynolds has played 20 more games than Mitchell since departing the Rabbitohs for Brisbane. 'He has played 5,592 minutes since Souths said he was a year-by-year proposition," he added. The stats around the amount of matches that Mitchell has missed since moving to the Rabbitohs are galling for Souths fans. In four years at the Roosters he played 11 more games than he's done in six seasons at the Bunnies. Latrell Mitchell is expected to miss at least a month after suffering a significant quadriceps injury at Rabbitohs training today (via @MCarayannis).Likely moderate grade strain/partial tear with that recovery timeframe. Rabbitohs season from hell on the injury front continues. — NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) July 17, 2025 Calls for NRL to shorten regular season Rothfield suggested the NRL needs to consider changing the schedule to protect the game's top players. Mitchell is among a number of the game's elite players who feature at club, Origin and Test level every season. 'It is for the elite players, for the players who play finals every year. They play State of Origin, they play trial matches, they play the All-Stars game,' Rothfield said. 'They then have an international series. Then they got their six weeks off, then they get an interrupted pre-season. You've got to look at the welfare and you've got to look at injuries across the competition. Look at Souths. Latrell, Walker, Murray, Campbell Graham, Keaon Koloamatangi.' RELATED: Ricky Stuart's message to Newcastle after 'disrespectful' contract offer Stunning development for Cleary brothers as Luai under heavy fire South Sydney's 'laughable' injury toll Speaking last week, Souths veteran Jai Arrow described the injury toll as "laughable". In Round 22 against the Broncos they'll be without Mitchell, Walker, Murray, Koloamatangi, Brandon Smith, Tevita Tatola, Euan Aitken, Jayden Sullivan, Mikaele Ravalawa and Davvy Moale due to injuries, while Jack Wighton is banned for the next three games. "It's pretty crazy and pretty laughable with the amount of people we have missing at the moment," Arrow said. "But it is what it is, all you've got to do is keep turning up and enjoying each other's company and turn up for each other on the field. That's all we can do, really."
News.com.au
4 days ago
- Sport
- News.com.au
‘We'll lose the fans': Bennett's solution to Origin debate as UK recruit prepares for $2m acid test
South Sydney coach Wayne Bennett has weighed in on proposed changes to State of Origin eligibility while also calling for calm as English recruit Lewis Dodd prepares to make his first start at halfback after a rough first year in Australia. FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every game of every round in the 2025 NRL Telstra Premiership, LIVE with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited-time offer > Dodd was signed for three years on a lucrative deal but has played just four games off the bench this season despite the Rabbitohs going through a horror injury run in 2025. He'll finally start in the No.7 jersey against the Sharks with Jamie Humphreys in concussion protocols, with Bennett refusing to make any comments about Dodd's future before he sees how he performs. 'We're all going to be a lot smarter after tomorrow night, so let's wait until tomorrow night and answer some questions then,' he said, with suggestions the club could try to move him on at the end of the year. 'He's been good since he's been here. He's trained well, is well-mannered and has been highly respectful of the other players and his teammates. Nothing has changed for him. 'It could be a big month for him.' While Bennett didn't want to comment on Dodd's future, he was strong on Origin eligibility rules after it emerged that the Australian Rugby League Commission was considering making changes to stop players from having to choose between the Blues or Maroons and international sides England and New Zealand. As it stands, Origin stars like Stephen Crichton, Payne Haas and Jarome Luai can represent the Blues and then play for Samoa at the end of the year because of their tier 2 status. That loophole isn't available to guys like Victor Radley, who chose England over NSW, while there have been plenty of Kiwis who have been blocked from representing their state, while others have chosen to represent Tonga or Samoa so they can also play Origin. Bennett, who was in the mix to coach Australia in this year's Ashes series, has no issue with guys playing both formats but wants players to pick a country and stick with that choice for the rest of their careers. 'I don't believe they're going to play with the rules of Origin itself, and that's really important because the minute the fans realise it's not the genuine Queensland v NSW that it is, then we'll lose the fans,' Bennett warned. 'That's the great thing about it, the rivalry is real and it's not false, so we need to maintain that. 'The off side of that is players leaving that arena to then go and play for Tonga, Samoa, England, whatever. 'I'm happy for them to do that, but they can't do it as they're doing at the moment where you play for Tonga because they're second tier. If you play for England, it's first tier, so you can't swap nations. 'My point with it is that Origin eligibility won't change, and after that if you want to play for England and you qualify for England, then you do that. 'I'm happy for that because it makes the international game stronger, but I just don't want to see them playing for England and then coming back to play for Tonga because they're a second-tier nation. 'It's served its purpose and it's time to move on from that situation.' Fans would have loved to have seen Kiwis legend Benji Marshall play Origin, but he still wouldn't have been eligible even under the proposed changes given he moved to Australia after his 13th birthday. Regardless, he said he was never jealous given he's proud of his heritage. 'I always found it to be an Australian thing,' the Wests Tigers coach said. 'I just thought it was respectful to what it was that players from Australia played in that. 'We were always fans growing up in New Zealand. There was NSW and Queensland, but there was no wanting to play for them. I always wanted to play for New Zealand.'
Sydney Morning Herald
5 days ago
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
Why Nathan Cleary didn't make the best NRL team since 2000
Ihave been tasked with selecting the best team of NRL players over the past quarter-century. The single restriction is that we only consider a player's deeds over the period from 2000 to 2025. So Joey Johns's grand final heroics in 1997 don't count, but his 2001 triumph does. I have also avoided the temptation to select players out of position – such as moving centre Greg Inglis to wing to accommodate Stephen Crichton, currently the best defensive centre in the NRL. But that's my choice. You can pick GI as fullback, where he played in South Sydney's 2014 premiership team, if you wish. Why does that matter? Well, as this masthead is an equal opportunity publication, the readers have a choice. Select your team and send it to us via the form below of the article, and we will update this article with a selection of readers' squads. You can also vote on my team in the poll included in the article. Fullback Billy Slater. An easy one to start. Slater was better than anyone during this period and even earlier, back to any fullback not named Clive Churchill or Graeme Langlands – both of whom are rugby league Immortals. One test of greatness is whether the player's dominance led to a rule change, and Billy the Kid did. Opposition teams were so worried about his ability to return the ball from kicks that they booted it past him. So, the rule-makers introduced a seven-tackle set from the 20-metre mark to punish kicks crossing the dead ball line. Slater sliced through defences with such ease it seemed as if he had a contortionist's body and a cat burglar's feet. He sophisticated the role of organising the defence. Plus he played 311 NRL games – nearly 50 more than the next best No 1, James Tedesco, who, admittedly, ain't finished yet. Wingers Brian To'o. The winger's role has changed dramatically over the past quarter-century, from try-scoring to metre-eating. The Penrith winger can do both, plus play both sides of the field in an era when junior coaches bracket backs as left or right. 'Bizza', as he is nicknamed, is certainly busy, making more metres than men nearly twice his size. He plays as if building a flat stretch of highway. When he returned to the Panthers side after an injury, one commentator quipped that Penrith had acquired another front-rower. He was NSW's best player in the second and third matches of the recent Origin series despite playing on one leg. He has tallied 125 NRL games since starting in 2019, putting him on track to equal the Roosters' Daniel Tupou, who started seven years earlier and is currently on 280 games. Brett Morris. An NRL decision in 2010 to remove the corner post from the field of play has revolutionised the wing position, with fans treated to acrobatic feats such as Xavier Coates's gyration through the air for a last-second try in 2024. Wingers now need only to avoid the sideline markings. The son of Steve 'Slippery' Morris – himself a top winger – played from 2006-21 but was a strong finisher, irrespective of the corner post. He won premierships with two clubs, the Dragons in 2010 and the Roosters in 2019, playing 215 NRL games and is near the top of the all-time try scorers list. Centres Greg Inglis. Big, strong, agile and fast, he was so dominant over a period when the Storm had two other selections in this quarter-century team that coaches were tempted to ask him not to eat fish in case a bone caught in his throat, or shower without a rubber foot mat, or walk under ladders. He had a remarkably quick-play-the ball for such a tall player. He grew up in Bowraville, NSW, but Queensland claimed him for Origin – possibly because his fend was so powerful that they assumed he came from Palm Island. Mark Gasnier. He was a nightmare for defences with his speed, step and one-handed offload. He played on the right-hand side of the field with the Dragons so would complement GI, whose powerful fend made him a left-side player. Gasnier, a 2010 premiership player, was also chosen in the Dragons' Team of the Century, joining his uncle, Reg, an Immortal. Five-eighth Darren Lockyer: He won three NRL grand finals as a fullback before the turn of the century and only one as a five-eighth afterwards, but he's still good enough to make my team as a No.6. He did not have a top halfback at the Broncos after the retirement of Alf Langer, yet still took command of a game. An outstanding leader, he was at the top for Queensland and Australia during a 16-year career in which he was also a dead-eyed goalkicker. He was the definition of a clutch player, scoring a late try in the 2006 Origin series that began Queensland's run of eight successive series. He played in the first six. If you don't like Lockyer, you've got a choice of Kieran Foran, Braith Anasta, James Maloney or Benji Marshall, all of whose careers began after 2000. Cameron Munster's time will come. Halfback Andrew 'Joey' Johns: Only half the eighth Immortal's career was played after 2000, yet he did enough in that period to win the key position in my quarter-century team. He won grand finals either side of the cut-off date in his 1993-2007 career and came out of representative retirement to win an Origin decider almost single-handedly in Brisbane in 2004. An honourable mention must go to Nathan Cleary whose 18 minutes of magic in the 2023 NRL grand final is unsurpassed. However, Cooper Cronk is my second choice. He is No.2 on the number of games (339) behind Daly Cherry-Evans; won six grand finals at two clubs and his absence with a broken arm from the 2014 Queensland team helped NSW end the Maroons' run of eight consecutive victories. Lock Isaah Yeo. The No.13 is now a middle player who can link the ball. The revolution began with Jake Trbojevic, and now the Penrith co-captain owns the position. When Michael Maguire selected his 2024 NSW team, he had Yeo on the bench, justifying it to me on the basis that the tall Yeo had a slow play-the-ball. That's like criticising a supermodel for having a bent toe. If you prefer granite toughness, Paul Gallen (248 NRL games) is your man; if you want a lightweight under-the-ball defender, it's Dallas Johnson. Second row Sonny Bill Williams. He won premierships at two clubs nine years apart, with an interregnum in the All Blacks where he played at centre in Tests. He came back to the NRL when coaches were far more attack-minded than now. Today's 'edge forwards' are primarily defensive players with the task of shutting down the opposition halfback. The Storm's Eli Katoa, with his leap for high balls on the last tackle, seemingly as if he has eyes in the back of his head, offers hope coaches are liberating these players to vary their attack. Sonny Bill was as unstoppable as wrinkles. To say he bothered opponents is like calling a shark in the bathtub a nuisance, with coaches committing extra tacklers to him to try and stop his offloads. He rarely mis-timed with his shoulder charges, which were eventually banned. He was the best defensive back-rower of his era, owning the right edge of the field, but also played a mobile role in attack. He also played the full 80 minutes. It's an indictment on today's straitjacket game that there is no role for a Sonny Bill or a Steve Menzies, whose best football was before 2000. Sam Burgess. The English international is closer to today's edge back-rower elite, such as Liam Martin and Angus Crichton, than the Sonny Bill/'Beaver' Menzies type. He was inspirational, impactful, tough, highly competitive, with the ability to offload and carry the ball forward like a middle player. The 2014 grand final was his finest moment, inspiring his teammates John Sattler-style after fracturing his cheekbone in the opening tackle. Hooker Cameron Smith. No arguments, please. OK, he didn't have to win the ball in scrums, but neither did any of his opponents. He set so many records – for NRL games played, wins, representative games, goals kicked in his position – that 'The Accountant' is the record holder for records broken. He could think his way past defenders, slowing the game down or speeding it up like no-one has done before. He played 408 NRL games during an 18-year period for one club and was as dedicated to the game at the end as much as he was at the beginning. The joy he expressed when scampering to the posts for a rare try was akin to a five-year-old racing to the tree on Christmas morning. Only Danny Buderus, who played half as many NRL games, comes close to him. Props Jared Waerea-Hargreaves: Ask any Kangaroo forward from the 1980s who they would like in the front row and they will nominate this grizzled veteran. The last of the true enforcers, he was willing to wear the black hat, intimidating opponents and inspiring teammates. His chest-out bravado was matched by the metres he made and tackles he executed. He played 255 NRL games, behind Petero Civoniceva (259) and Jesse Bromwich (316). Payne Haas. The prototype of the modern middle. A big, skilful player with a high work rate in defence, he has better footwork and offload ability than JWH. He has some of Sonny Bill's skills inside a giant's body. Importantly, he can play 80 minutes when many middles leave the field after 20. His pain tolerance is off the charts. Bench Johnathan Thurston. Who can forget his heroics in the Cowboys' 2015 grand final victory, speeding through the Broncos in the final seconds as if riding a minibike through a herd of drugged elephants. Like Lockyer, he always knew where to be. Ben Kennedy. I came close to typing in others, but BK was explosive against the unbackable Eels in the first quarter of the 2001 grand final. Jesse Bromwich. Won Player of the Year competitions at the Storm ahead of other Golden Boot winners at the club at the same time. Paul Gallen. Led the Sharks to their inaugural premiership. Achieved a delicate balance between what his coach wanted him to do (carry the ball forward) and what he wanted to do (ball-play and offload). PS. Cameron Munster, Stephen Crichton, Angus Crichton and Nathan Cleary are possibly on the waiting list but another could come along sooner than we think, a player whose brilliance is equal to, say, Joey Johns, or greater in a more nuanced way. The same applies to art and literature, as it does to the great and glorious game of rugby league. So don't forget that Michelangelo was busy sculpting another Pieta days before he died in 1564. And what happened two months later? Shakespeare was born.
The Age
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Age
Why Nathan Cleary didn't make the best NRL team since 2000
Ihave been tasked with selecting the best team of NRL players over the past quarter-century. The single restriction is that we only consider a player's deeds over the period from 2000 to 2025. So Joey Johns's grand final heroics in 1997 don't count, but his 2001 triumph does. I have also avoided the temptation to select players out of position – such as moving centre Greg Inglis to wing to accommodate Stephen Crichton, currently the best defensive centre in the NRL. But that's my choice. You can pick GI as fullback, where he played in South Sydney's 2014 premiership team, if you wish. Why does that matter? Well, as this masthead is an equal opportunity publication, the readers have a choice. Select your team and send it to us via the form below of the article, and we will update this article with a selection of readers' squads. You can also vote on my team in the poll included in the article. Fullback Billy Slater. An easy one to start. Slater was better than anyone during this period and even earlier, back to any fullback not named Clive Churchill or Graeme Langlands – both of whom are rugby league Immortals. One test of greatness is whether the player's dominance led to a rule change, and Billy the Kid did. Opposition teams were so worried about his ability to return the ball from kicks that they booted it past him. So, the rule-makers introduced a seven-tackle set from the 20-metre mark to punish kicks crossing the dead ball line. Slater sliced through defences with such ease it seemed as if he had a contortionist's body and a cat burglar's feet. He sophisticated the role of organising the defence. Plus he played 311 NRL games – nearly 50 more than the next best No 1, James Tedesco, who, admittedly, ain't finished yet. Wingers Brian To'o. The winger's role has changed dramatically over the past quarter-century, from try-scoring to metre-eating. The Penrith winger can do both, plus play both sides of the field in an era when junior coaches bracket backs as left or right. 'Bizza', as he is nicknamed, is certainly busy, making more metres than men nearly twice his size. He plays as if building a flat stretch of highway. When he returned to the Panthers side after an injury, one commentator quipped that Penrith had acquired another front-rower. He was NSW's best player in the second and third matches of the recent Origin series despite playing on one leg. He has tallied 125 NRL games since starting in 2019, putting him on track to equal the Roosters' Daniel Tupou, who started seven years earlier and is currently on 280 games. Brett Morris. An NRL decision in 2010 to remove the corner post from the field of play has revolutionised the wing position, with fans treated to acrobatic feats such as Xavier Coates's gyration through the air for a last-second try in 2024. Wingers now need only to avoid the sideline markings. The son of Steve 'Slippery' Morris – himself a top winger – played from 2006-21 but was a strong finisher, irrespective of the corner post. He won premierships with two clubs, the Dragons in 2010 and the Roosters in 2019, playing 215 NRL games and is near the top of the all-time try scorers list. Centres Greg Inglis. Big, strong, agile and fast, he was so dominant over a period when the Storm had two other selections in this quarter-century team that coaches were tempted to ask him not to eat fish in case a bone caught in his throat, or shower without a rubber foot mat, or walk under ladders. He had a remarkably quick-play-the ball for such a tall player. He grew up in Bowraville, NSW, but Queensland claimed him for Origin – possibly because his fend was so powerful that they assumed he came from Palm Island. Mark Gasnier. He was a nightmare for defences with his speed, step and one-handed offload. He played on the right-hand side of the field with the Dragons so would complement GI, whose powerful fend made him a left-side player. Gasnier, a 2010 premiership player, was also chosen in the Dragons' Team of the Century, joining his uncle, Reg, an Immortal. Five-eighth Darren Lockyer: He won three NRL grand finals as a fullback before the turn of the century and only one as a five-eighth afterwards, but he's still good enough to make my team as a No.6. He did not have a top halfback at the Broncos after the retirement of Alf Langer, yet still took command of a game. An outstanding leader, he was at the top for Queensland and Australia during a 16-year career in which he was also a dead-eyed goalkicker. He was the definition of a clutch player, scoring a late try in the 2006 Origin series that began Queensland's run of eight successive series. He played in the first six. If you don't like Lockyer, you've got a choice of Kieran Foran, Braith Anasta, James Maloney or Benji Marshall, all of whose careers began after 2000. Cameron Munster's time will come. Halfback Andrew 'Joey' Johns: Only half the eighth Immortal's career was played after 2000, yet he did enough in that period to win the key position in my quarter-century team. He won grand finals either side of the cut-off date in his 1993-2007 career and came out of representative retirement to win an Origin decider almost single-handedly in Brisbane in 2004. An honourable mention must go to Nathan Cleary whose 18 minutes of magic in the 2023 NRL grand final is unsurpassed. However, Cooper Cronk is my second choice. He is No.2 on the number of games (339) behind Daly Cherry-Evans; won six grand finals at two clubs and his absence with a broken arm from the 2014 Queensland team helped NSW end the Maroons' run of eight consecutive victories. Lock Isaah Yeo. The No.13 is now a middle player who can link the ball. The revolution began with Jake Trbojevic, and now the Penrith co-captain owns the position. When Michael Maguire selected his 2024 NSW team, he had Yeo on the bench, justifying it to me on the basis that the tall Yeo had a slow play-the-ball. That's like criticising a supermodel for having a bent toe. If you prefer granite toughness, Paul Gallen (248 NRL games) is your man; if you want a lightweight under-the-ball defender, it's Dallas Johnson. Second row Sonny Bill Williams. He won premierships at two clubs nine years apart, with an interregnum in the All Blacks where he played at centre in Tests. He came back to the NRL when coaches were far more attack-minded than now. Today's 'edge forwards' are primarily defensive players with the task of shutting down the opposition halfback. The Storm's Eli Katoa, with his leap for high balls on the last tackle, seemingly as if he has eyes in the back of his head, offers hope coaches are liberating these players to vary their attack. Sonny Bill was as unstoppable as wrinkles. To say he bothered opponents is like calling a shark in the bathtub a nuisance, with coaches committing extra tacklers to him to try and stop his offloads. He rarely mis-timed with his shoulder charges, which were eventually banned. He was the best defensive back-rower of his era, owning the right edge of the field, but also played a mobile role in attack. He also played the full 80 minutes. It's an indictment on today's straitjacket game that there is no role for a Sonny Bill or a Steve Menzies, whose best football was before 2000. Sam Burgess. The English international is closer to today's edge back-rower elite, such as Liam Martin and Angus Crichton, than the Sonny Bill/'Beaver' Menzies type. He was inspirational, impactful, tough, highly competitive, with the ability to offload and carry the ball forward like a middle player. The 2014 grand final was his finest moment, inspiring his teammates John Sattler-style after fracturing his cheekbone in the opening tackle. Hooker Cameron Smith. No arguments, please. OK, he didn't have to win the ball in scrums, but neither did any of his opponents. He set so many records – for NRL games played, wins, representative games, goals kicked in his position – that 'The Accountant' is the record holder for records broken. He could think his way past defenders, slowing the game down or speeding it up like no-one has done before. He played 408 NRL games during an 18-year period for one club and was as dedicated to the game at the end as much as he was at the beginning. The joy he expressed when scampering to the posts for a rare try was akin to a five-year-old racing to the tree on Christmas morning. Only Danny Buderus, who played half as many NRL games, comes close to him. Props Jared Waerea-Hargreaves: Ask any Kangaroo forward from the 1980s who they would like in the front row and they will nominate this grizzled veteran. The last of the true enforcers, he was willing to wear the black hat, intimidating opponents and inspiring teammates. His chest-out bravado was matched by the metres he made and tackles he executed. He played 255 NRL games, behind Petero Civoniceva (259) and Jesse Bromwich (316). Payne Haas. The prototype of the modern middle. A big, skilful player with a high work rate in defence, he has better footwork and offload ability than JWH. He has some of Sonny Bill's skills inside a giant's body. Importantly, he can play 80 minutes when many middles leave the field after 20. His pain tolerance is off the charts. Bench Johnathan Thurston. Who can forget his heroics in the Cowboys' 2015 grand final victory, speeding through the Broncos in the final seconds as if riding a minibike through a herd of drugged elephants. Like Lockyer, he always knew where to be. Ben Kennedy. I came close to typing in others, but BK was explosive against the unbackable Eels in the first quarter of the 2001 grand final. Jesse Bromwich. Won Player of the Year competitions at the Storm ahead of other Golden Boot winners at the club at the same time. Paul Gallen. Led the Sharks to their inaugural premiership. Achieved a delicate balance between what his coach wanted him to do (carry the ball forward) and what he wanted to do (ball-play and offload). PS. Cameron Munster, Stephen Crichton, Angus Crichton and Nathan Cleary are possibly on the waiting list but another could come along sooner than we think, a player whose brilliance is equal to, say, Joey Johns, or greater in a more nuanced way. The same applies to art and literature, as it does to the great and glorious game of rugby league. So don't forget that Michelangelo was busy sculpting another Pieta days before he died in 1564. And what happened two months later? Shakespeare was born.
Sydney Morning Herald
22-07-2025
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
Last Rabbit standing: Lewis Dodd to finally wear South Sydney's No. 7
In what can be likened to rugby league's own version of Stephen Bradbury, Lewis Dodd has finally been given the chance to wear the South Sydney No. 7 jersey – because there are no halves still standing at the club. Jamie Humphreys will miss Saturday's clash against Cronulla because of delayed concussion symptoms he experienced after last weekend's loss to Penrith, joining fellow playmakers Cody Walker (hamstring) and Bud Sullivan (broken leg), as well as Latrell Mitchell (quad) who has filled in at five-eighth, in the bulging casualty ward. Dodd left St Helens in the Super League to ink a three-year, $2m deal with Souths, but has struggled to get a look-in under coach Wayne Bennett. The 23-year-old has featured in just four games, with three of them coming off the bench, and one at five-eighth. Teammate Jai Arrow, who remains the only player to have featured in every game this year, especially now Keaon Koloamatangi (ankle) is sidelined, said Dodd welcomed the news when told by Bennett he would be starting at halfback on Monday. 'It's amazing what an opportunity can do for someone, Lewis has that opportunity now to start at halfback, and to make this team his own,' Arrow said. 'It's exactly what happened with Jamie at the start of the year, he got that opportunity and took it with both hands. 'Now 'Doddy' gets to do that, I'm excited for him, we're all excited for him, and I know when Wayne told him at the review, he clapped to himself and knew he was ready. He was pretty pumped.'
