{{Infobox_nrl_club | clubname = South Sydney Rabbitohs | image = Image:Southslogo.jpg | fullname = South Sydney District Rugby League Football Club | emblem = Rabbit | colours = Cardinal red and myrtle green | founded = 1908 (foundation club) | sport = Rugby_league | league = NSWRL/ARL, National_Rugby_League | ground = Telstra_Stadium | capacity = 83,000 | chairman= Nicholas Pappas | ceo = Shane Richardson | captain = Peter Cusack | coach = Shaun_McRae | Owners= Russel_Crowe, Peter Holmes a Court | season = 2005 | position = 13th of 15 | premierships = 20 - 1908, 1909, 1914, 1918, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1931, 1932, 1950, 1951, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1967, 1968, 1970, 1971 (NSWRL) | runners = 13 - 1910, 1916, 1917, 1920, 1923, 1924, 1935, 1937, 1939, 1949, 1952, 1965, 1969 | minors = 17 - 1908, 1909, 1914, 1917, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1929, 1932, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1953, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1989 | spoons = 7 - 1945, 1946, 1962, 1975, 1990, 2003, 2004 | win = 67 - 0 vs. Western Suburbs, July_23, 1910¹ | loss = 0 - 66 vs. New_Zealand_Warriors, June_25, 2006 }} The '''South Sydney Rabbitohs''' (commonly nicknamed "Souths" or "the Bunnies") are a team in the National_Rugby_League (NRL), the premier Rugby_league competition in Australia. The club was founded in 1908 and was one of the foundation members in the then New_South_Wales_Rugby_League (NSWRL) competition, predecessor of the Australian_Rugby_League (ARL) and the current NRL competition. They are one of only two foundation clubs still present in the league, the other being the Sydney_Roosters. The Rabbitohs were traditionally based in the south of Sydney, and have previously played out of Redfern_Oval then Aussie_Stadium, but their current home ground is Telstra_Stadium at Sydney_Olympic_Park. South Sydney are the most successful team in the history of Australian rugby league, in terms of premierships, winning an unprecedented 20 first grade premierships. However, they have not won a premiership since 1971, and last made the finals in 1989. ==Club History== === Early years and the "Rabbitohs" legend === South Sydney was the third rugby league football club founded in Australia after Glebe and Newtown. One version of how the club got the "Rabbitohs" nickname comes from their rugby union days at the turn of the 20th century. In those hard times, players wearing their cardinal red and myrtle green football jumpers, earned some extra money on Saturday mornings by hawking rabbits around the district with the traditional cry of "Rabbitoh!" echoing through the narrow streets. As they made a sale, they would sling the bunny from their shoulder and skin it on the spot, inevitably accumulating some of the fur and blood on their jerseys as they did so. When they played in those blood stained jumpers that afternoon, opponents from wealthier rugby clubs did not always appreciate the aroma and would mockingly repeat the 'Rabbitoh!' cry. Another version relates that the Rabbitoh name was a derogatory reference by opposing teams to South's home ground being littered with "rabbit 'oles". Souths took part in the first game of the inaugural competition when it started on Easter Monday, 20th April, 1908. They defeated North Sydney 11-7 at Birchgrove Oval. Souths won the inaugural Sydney premiership beating Eastern Suburbs 14-12 in the final and backed it up the following year in extraordinary circumstances when opponents Balmain refused to show up in protest of the final being played as a prelude to a Kangaroos v Wallabies match. South Sydney kicked off to no one and were declared premiers. After premierships in 1914 and 1918, Souths enjoyed the first of three golden premiership eras they would enjoy winning seven out of eight premierships from 1925-32, only missing out in 1930 where Wests broke through for their maiden premiership. Star players in Souths first golden era included five-eighth Alf "Smacker" Blair, point scoring freak Benny Wearing and second row forward George Treweeke. Such was their dominance in the early years of the rugby league competition that the Rabbitohs were labelled "The Pride of the League". Premiership success avoided Souths between 1933-49 despite being runners up on four occasions before a new breed of Rabbitohs would make their mark on the game. === The 1950's golden era and "The Little Master" === Souths 12th premiership came in 1950 where they won five of the next six titles, missing out in 1952 in a very controversial final against Western Suburbs where Souths had a fair try disallowed. It was Wests 4th and final premiership. Leading the charge for Souths was Jack Rayner and also featuring in Rayner's side included Chicka Cowie, Johnny Graves, Ian Moir, Greg Hawick and goal-kicking forward Bernie Purcell. But the heart and soul of the Rabbitohs in the 1950's was undoubtably Clive Churchill. "The Little Master" as he was nicknamed by admirers was a courageous and genious fullback from Mereweather in Newcastle. Souths signed him up as a youngster and he would be central figures in both of Souths golden eras and also the start of Australia's dominance at Test level to where it is at embarrassing proportions today. Churchill captained Australia in a record 24 Test matches but strangely didn't captain Souths to a premiership, but his contribution to South Sydney can't be spoken of highly enough - when people think of South Sydney, Clive Churchill is one of the first names mentioned. After being the main player in Souths golden run between 1950-55, Churchill was back as coach in 1967 to help end the dominance of St.George and steer the Rabbitohs to their final four premierships as a coach. Universially Churchill is regared as the greatest ever Australian Rugby League player. Churchill lost his battle with cancer in 1985 aged 58. In memory of Churchill, a stand at the Sydney Cricket Ground was named after him, a place where he achieved many of his finest feats and acts of courage for South Sydney and Australia and on grand final day, the best performed player in the grand final is awarded the prestigous "Clive Churchill Medal". === The 1960's and 1970's glory years === Souths second golden era ended in 1955 and their final golden era started in 1967 with the remarkable St.George era of 11 consecutive premierships in between two special periods in the history of South Sydney. Churchill came back to coach the Rabbitohs and built a premiership team around a tough pack of forwards including Ron Coote (who was Australia's second best ever lock after John Raper), Bob McCarthy (who scored over 100 first grade tries), Gary Stevens, Bob Moses, John O'Neill, Elwyn Walters and inspirational captain John Sattler. Signs that a great Souths side was in the making emerged in 1965 when a then record crowd of 78,056 supporters packed the SCG to see a young Souths team take on the mighty St.George in the grand final. Souths had already beaten Saints twice during the 1965 season and the huge crowd showed up expecting to see an end to the Dragons' decade of dominance. Souths showed great heart in going down 12-8 in one of the most memorable grand finals of all time. Souths would win four of the next five premierships between 1967 and 1971. In the 1967 grand final Souths beat Canterbury 12-10 following a spectacular intercept try by second row forward Bob McCarthy. In 1968 Souths defeated Manly 13-9 featuring a solo length of the field try by winger Mike Cleary. Souths lost the 1969 grand final 11-2 to Balmain who devised a controversial plan of "go slow" tactics in order to successfully disrupt Souths play. Souths convincingly beat Manly in the 1970 grand final with halfback Bob Grant starring with 2 tries. Souths last grand final victory in 1971 saw them beat back a determined comeback by St.George in the second half to take out the game 16-10. During this golden era Souths backline also had plenty of class including goal kicking freak Eric Simms, lightning fast Michael Cleary, Paul Sait, Bob Honan, Brian James, brothers Ray and Arthur Branighan, Denis Pittard and Bob Grant. Only Arthur Branighan didn't achieve International status of the 1970 grand final side that beat Manly 23-12. Souths was a team of plenty of courage and that was highlighted by captain John Sattler in the 1970 grand final when in the early minutes he was "king-hit" late and unexpectedly by Manly prop John Bucknall. The hit broke Sattler's jaw but he continued to play on for the full match and to inspirationaly lead by example. Goal-kicking fullback Eric Simms broke many point scoring records during this period, scoring a total of 1,841 first grade points for the club by the end of his career. Simms was such a great exponent of kicking field goals that in season 1971 the game's authorities eventually reduced the value of the field goal from two points to one. International five-eighth Denis Pittard won the coveted Rothmans Medal twice in 1969 and 1971. === Hard times and an 1980's revival === Financial problems started to hit Souths and key players from the 1971 grand final side headed to either Manly or Easts where both those clubs achieved some success after buying the champions Souths produced. Manly were winless until 1972 while Easts hadn't won a premiership since 1945. Souths Leagues Club's doors were closed in 1973 but a 'Save Our Souths' campaign ensured the Rabbitohs survived. They went through tough times but always found a way to get by through tremendous spirit and hard workers. Souths star player in the late '70s was the powerful Australian representative winger Terry Fahey, affectionately known to fans as the "Redfern Express". Utility back Robert Laurie won the prestigous 'Dally M' award in 1980. Souths only trophies in the 1980's were the win over Cronulla in the final of the mid-week Tooth Cup competition in 1981 and victory in the pre-season 'Sevens' competition in 1988. In the premiership Souths made the semi-finals in 1980, 1984, 1986, 1987 and 1989 when they were runaway minor premiers. In 1984 Souths came from 0-14 behind to beat Manly 22-18 in a memorable first semi final but were knocked out the following week by St.George, but their best two years were 1986 and 1989 under the leadership of Mario Fenech. The Rabbitohs just missed out on the minor premiership in 1986 and sadly lost both semi finals to Canterbury and Balmain to be bundled out. Souths led from basically start to finish in 1989 remarkably not losing a single match away from the Sydney Football Stadium. Come finals time, they lost a classic semi-final to Balmain and Canberra a week later powered home to end Souths best chance of getting back to the glory years. Apart from hooker and captain Fenech, Souths stars during this period included forwards Les Davidson and Ian Roberts, halfback Craig Coleman and mercurial five-eighth Phil Blake. === The troubled 1990's and exclusion === More troubles hit Souths in the 1990's where they went from minor premiers in 1989 to wooden spooners in 1990. It was tough times but led from the front by George Piggins, Souths again just did enough to survive in the competition but much of the time made up the bottom of the ladder. They played some enterprising footy at times and in 1994 took out the pre-season competition defeating two-time premiers Brisbane 27-26 in the final. The outbreak of Super League was going to affect the future of Souths with the vision clear to cut Sydney sides with Souths in the firing line. Refusing to merge or drop out, the NRL (a merger of Super League and ARL) cut South Sydney from the premiership for the 2000 season. The NRL set a bar of 14-teams and with 15 applicants, Souths were the team to miss out. Souths were finally starting to show some promise and strong management in 1999 when the cut came. === Re-admission === Souths fought their way back through the court rooms and public rallies generating a swell of support throughout Sydney and Australia as they took on the heavies at the NRL and News Limited. Souths won re-admission on appeal during the 2001 season and were brought back into the NRL competition for the 2002 season. ==Recent history== === 2002-04 === After being ousted from the NRL league competition in 1999, the Rabbitohs were granted re-admission in 2002 after court action. Not surprisingly, after having to create an entirely new team for the season, the Rabbitohs were not at their former best and performed disappointingly during their return season. Be that as it may, they did manage to notch up wins over various clubs, including two over Canberra. 2003 saw the team finish as wooden spooners, but they did acquire various new players including Bryan_Fletcher, Ashley_Harrison, Justin Smith and - arguably most importantly - Luke_MacDougall and Mark Minichello. Sadly, 2004 was another less-than-successful campaign on the feild. On the field, however, the league world was shocked by the announcement that Penrith CEO Shane Richardson would be quitting his post there to join the Rabbitohs. Richardson had previously led the Penrith Panthers football club to their 2nd ever Premiership in 2003 in what is often regarded as the "greatest grand final ever played" against the Sydney Roosters. At the time Richardson said words to the effect of "bringing this club back to its previous success will be the challenge of my life. It will be tough, but I expect this club to be competing in the NRL finals in 2008" === 2005 === There was wild partying from Rabbitohs supporters on the afternoon of Sunday 20 March, when Souths bounced back from an all-too anticipated loss to the Roosters the week before. The season was just two rounds old and already the Rabbitohs had a thunderous win on the board - 49-26 over the Parramatta_Eels. Luke MacDougall's hat-trick of tries put the Bunnies on cloud 9, along with half back Joe Williams' eight conversions and a field goal. The Rabbitohs would be winless again until Round 5, when they disciplined the injury-ridden Newcastle_Knights 37-12 at Central_Coast_Stadium in Gosford, before a crowd of 16,162. This raised another interesting point of debate throughout the season - News Ltd and media owner John Singleton (and assorted media personality employees) were calling for the Rabbitohs to abandon South Sydney and relocate to Gosford, especially after the Central Coast controversially lost their bid for a new team to the Gold_Coast_Titans mid-season. Most fans and club officials were vehemently opposed to the idea, being an attitude that has not subsided to this day. For the next eight rounds, the Rabbitohs suffered loss after loss to the NRL juggernauts (including form teams Melbourne, Brisbane and Manly but also to fellow basement dwellers Penrith) with the only relief being the bye in Round 8. After a promising start, Season 2005 was shaping up much like the last few years for the Rabbitohs, but it was not to be. Many cite the turning point as Round 13, against the Bulldogs. Souths held the reigning premiers to a shock 21-all draw, and thereafter, momentum suddenly seemed to be swinging back the Bunnies' way. A week later they hammered Manly 44-6, and though they went on to lose three more consecutively after that (including a second to arch-rivals St_George_Illawarra_Dragons), they bounced back to win 5 of their last 6, beginning with a 24-14 win over Cronulla at the Sydney_Football_Stadium, and highlighted with a hard-fought 16-14 downing of the North_Queensland_Cowboys at Dairy Farmers Stadium in Townsville. Finally overcoming the Bulldogs in Round 21, the Rabbitohs also defeated the Sydney_Roosters in Sydney 17-16 in a hard fought and spiteful encounter. A witness at the ground recalled that immediately after the siren sounded indicating full time: "The Souths players came over to raise cheerful salutes to those fans in the lower-priced seating. That was a nice touch. I saw complete strangers hugging each other like long lost family and tears were streaming down the cheeks of grown men who stood there looking stunned after the match, still trying to fathom this extraordinary result." At the ensuing fracas at the press conference after that game, Sydney Roosters (and now also Australian) coach Ricky Stuart famously walked into same and said words to the effect of " I dont know why you want to interview me? This game was all about Souths, they played brilliantly, I suggest you go and talk to them" and with those few words, got up and that walked out. This spontaneous tribute endeared him to many Souths fans, despite his coaching stewardship of one of their greatest rivals. All in all, Season 2005 was the most promising since re-admission; under coach Shaun_McRae the team were beiginning to look like a renewed force. Luke MacDougall and Ashley Harrison both had solid seasons, though Harrison left the club at the end of the season to play for the Sydney Roosters for a substantial sign-on fee. Unfortunately for him, he failed to find the form in 2006 that had made him Souths' player of the year in 2005. As at August 2006, there is considerable speculation about his playing future with the Roosters with over a year left on his rumouredly massive contract. Their form in the latter part of 2005 was excellent and augered well for 2006. Their reasonably strong finish handed the bottom place on the NRL ladder to the Newcastle_Knights, therefore avoiding the horrible fate of receiving three wooden-spoons in a row. Their last match was against the Sharks at Endeavour Feild (the Sharks home ground). Souths won this in convincing fashion, with young five-eighth John Sutton making a significant impression. For the Sharks, David Peachey starred in his final match for them before he left in what was to be a short stint in the English Super League. Somewhat ironically (see below), many Souths fans joined with those of the Sharks queuing up to wish him well for the future at the after-match celebrations. In addition, South Sydney finished level on premiership points with the Canterbury_Bulldogs; who were the premiers of 2004. === 2006 === In the second half of 2005 and during the pre-season, Souths had acquired many sound players for 2006 including Jaiman Lowe, Ben Rogers and Joe Gulavao. They also signed key five-eighth/lock John Sutton for several years (a South Sydney junior). Despite coming close, Souths were yet to score a win after round ten but had showed significant progress. One area of weakness nominated by fans included the half back position. An injury to regular half-back Ben Walker took a heavy toll in the teams performances. Players who have made a big impact in a losing side include David Fa'alogo (a New Zealand International), Todd Polglase and Luke McDougall. Despite this, the club was still enthusiastic about its future. On 11 June 2006 Souths had their first win of the 2006 season. They defeated the Brisbane_Broncos for the first time since 1989. It should be noted that the Broncos were missing more than half their regular starters due to injury and State of Origin, although the Souths side was also missing seven regular players through injury(and Souths had significantly less depth than the aforementioned Broncos). On 25_June Souths suffered their worst defeat ever, going down 66-0 to the New_Zealand_Warriors at Telstra_Stadium. The performance was so poor that the team was booed off the field by its own fans at full-time which was extraordinary given the loyal attitude of their followers. In a rare move, this catastrophic result moved the club to make a full and unreserved aopology to their fans through the nation's press, in direct letters to members and through the electronic media. Souths second win of the season was against the Canberra Raiders on 29th July 2006 where they won 21-6. This was a result not picked by any expert league journalist at the time. It was considered somewhat remarkable given the fact that the Raiders were vying for a top and finals position within a stacked league table. It was during this game that Souths winger Nathan Merritt scored his 17th try of the season, taking him to the top of the league's try scoring table. After the match, Souths noted that they were out to have a good finish to the year although they would be trialling players in fresh positions for next year were new signings will be on board (see below). On the 6th of August, the rabbitohs then beat the top-eight placed Penrith Panthers 32-26, all but ending their challenge for a finals berth. This heart breaking loss for the Panthers included a further three tries for winger Merritt to take his season total to 20 - the highest season try tally for a Souths player since the 1950's. Once again, only one recognised journalist had tipped them to beat a team featuring many internationals including the illustrious Craig Gower. Following the loss to the Warriors above, the Rabbitohs then announced a series of shock big-name player signings including Roy Asotasi and Daniel Irvine (prop and hooker from the Bulldogs), David Kidwell (back row forward from Melbourne), Nigel Vagana (centre from Cronulla) Dean Widders and Jeremy Smith (utility forwad and second choice half-back from Parramatta). Of these, Roy Asotasi, was extremely popular with fans as he is currently considered by many as one of the top three forwards in the game. Off-field the club had secured Jason Taylor (current Parramatta coach to be assistant coach at Souths) and Mark Hughes (former Head of Recruitment at the Bulldogs) as well as others. Off-field losses have included Arthur Kitinas, assistant coach, who was surprisingly released following the loss to the Warriors and whose exit dissapointed many fans who labelled same as a "scape goat measure". That was a depiction fiercely denied by the club. Notwithstanding that, the promises made by the club in 2006 have been kept and the club remains at August 2006 an active participant in the player market. The club that is known as "the pride of the league" is entirely upbeat about its future and welcomes new fans as it prepares for premiership number 21. ==='''Privatisation'''=== Russell_Crowe, the hollywood actor from Gladiator had been a fervent "Rabbitohs" supporter for years, helping the club during their exile from the NRL. He had been criticised at various times for being too much of a supporter due to incidents such as his attempt to speak to the team during half-time and his speeches. After prominent Sydney Rugby League reporter Danny_Wiedler asked him why he did not buy the club, he initially answered that there would be too many issues. However he and Peter_Holmes_a_Court eventually tabled a bid worth $3,000,000. This was bitterly resisted by George_Piggins and many who thought the bid was not enough. The pair won the necessary 75% of the vote needed, though the result is being disputed by George Piggins. David Peachey came to the club 5 days before making his first appearance for the club in round 13, after being sacked by his English club Widnes. He showed some sort of hope for the South Sydney fans that day. After coming to Souths, Peachey helped steer the Rabbitohs to an unlucky loss to Canberra in round 13, as the red and green lost by only 2 points. The next week, in his second match for the Rabbitohs, Peachey steered the bottom of the table Souths to a commanding 34-14 point win over the second placed in the table Broncos. This was just days after the club was officially handed over to Peter Holmes a Court and Russell Crowe. Interested parties should note that the Privatisation as sought and manifested was partial only and that the broad membership still retains full rights and effective control over such items as the logo, name and other important branding property. That purports to provide a balance between the private and the more broader public membership interest. The club is now both united and content under this unique ownership arrangement. == Club Internationals == Tommy Anderson, Jim Armstrong, Alf Blair, Cecil Blinkhorn, Ray Branighan, Tim Brasher, Arthur Butler, Bill Cann, Mark Carroll, Clive Churchill, Michael Cleary, Ron Coote, Les Cowie, Frank Curran, Steve Darmody, Les Davidson, Jim Davis, Denis Donoghue, Terry Fahey, Harry Finch, Bryan Fletcher, Herb Gilbert, Bob Grant, John Graves, Howard Hallett, Ernie Hammerton, Greg Hawick, Arthur Hennessy, Bob Honan, Harold Horder, Brian James, Harry Kadwell, Clem Kennedy, John Kerwick, Jack Leveson, Eric Lewis, Jim Lisle, Bob McCarthy, Eddie McGrath, Paddy Maher, Ian Moir, Ray Norman, Alf O'Connor, Frank O'Connor, John O'Neill, Arthur Oxford, George Piggins, Denis Pittard, Bernie Purcell, Jack Rayner, Eddie Root, Johnny Rosewell, Paul Sait, John Sattler, Eric Simms, Bill Spence, Gary Stevens, George Treweek, Elwyn Walters, Benny Wearing, Jack Why, Percy Williams. == Test Captains == Arthur Hennessy (1908), Clive Churchill (1950-1955), John Sattler (1969-70), Bob McCarthy (1973) == World Cup Captains == Clive Churchill (1954), Ron Coote (1970) == Players of note == *Herb_Gilbert (1911-1912, 1915) *Harold_Horder (1912-1919, 1924) *George_Treweeke (1926-1934) *Les_Cowie (1947-1957) *Clive_Churchill (1947-1958) *Greg_Hawick (1950-1956) *Ian_Moir (1952-1958) *Jim_Lisle (1962-1968) *John_Sattler (1963-1972) *Bob_McCarthy (1963-1975, 1978) *Ron_Coote (1964-1971) *John_O’Neill (1965-1971, 1975-1976) *Bob Grant (1966-1975) *Elwyn_Walters (1966-1973) *Gary_Stevens (1964-1976) *Ray_Branighan (1968-1971) *Paul_Sait (1968-1978) *Ian Roberts (1986-1989) *Craig_Wing (1997-1999) *George_Piggins (1964-1978) *Mario_Fenech (1981-1990) *Kevin_Longbottom (1961-1971) *Eric_Simms (1965-1975) *Phil_Blake (1987-1990) *Dennis_Pittard (1968-1973) *Mario_Fenech (1981-1990) *Ashley_Harrison (2003-2005) == Captains (since 1992) == {{col-begin-small}} {{col-4}} *Michael Andrews (1992-3) *Craig_Field (1995-6) *Craig_Salvatori (1996) *Sean_Garlick (1997-9) {{col-4}} *Adam_Muir (2002) *Bryan_Fletcher (2003-2005) *Ashley_Harrison (2005) *Peter_Cusack (2006) {{col-end}} ==Famous Fans== * Russell_Crowe * Don_Lane * Ray Martin * Andrew_Denton ==References== == External links == *Official South Sydney Rabbitohs Web Site *Rabbitoh Warren *The Pride Web Site *The Pride Forum {{NRL}} Category:National_Rugby_League Category:Australian_rugby_league_clubs Category:Sport_in_Sydney Category:Sport_in_New_South_Wales