This article is from the Daily Telegraph,
Latrell Mitchell found himself at the centre of South Sydney’s shock finals fade-out. In an exclusive interview, coach Jason Demetriou believes Mitchell will be front and centre of a Rabbitohs revival.
Fatima Kdouh: Last season you were leading the competition in May. How much did it sting missing the finals?
Jason Demetriou: It’s still stinging me sitting here talking to you about it, and it will until we start playing again. That fire is driving us all. But we have to focus on the positives. We debuted some real talent last year. At our best, we beat the best teams in the competition. We want to get that back and be consistent.
FK:What have you learned after an up-and-down season in 2023?
JD: A lot of it for me is about the managing side of things. Whether that be managing through a season or managing staff, managing the team through injuries, etc., reflecting back on that and learning how to stay calm through that season.
I can only reflect on what I can control. Although we did some good things, we fell away at the back end. Making sure we get our plan right and we are able to stick through it.
FK:The Sam Burgess and Latrell Mitchell saga felt like a tipping point in your season. How do you reflect on that period?
JD: There are things internally that I reflect on and they are things that will stay internal. They are not things I am going to discuss outside of that.
As far as I’m concerned, what happens in our four walls stays in our four walls.
We need to have some protection over that as well, and that is something we’ll be driving this year, and have some pride in making sure we are looking out for each other. Every club goes through issues on and off the field and it’s about how we manage that.
We’ve got some new staff which is exciting, they are fitting in really well. So the culture and the mood in the place is excellent. It’s up to us to keep that going.
FK:Latrell Mitchell is a superstar and with that comes plenty of attention. What role, if any, do you play in trying to manage that?
JD: He’s a big-name player and sport creates those types of players, whether they be villains or heroes.
Sometimes they are both, and Latrell is obviously one of those.
For us, it’s about how we can control that and bringing it back to the team. Latrell is part of the team. When we communicate, we communicate in a team-first mindset and that’s to make sure we are keeping our mind on the team and protecting Latrell from the headlines that people like to make about him.
FK:There’s been whispers about a positional switch for Latrell from fullback to five-eighth, is there anything in it?
JD: I’m really excited about Latrell in 2024. I’ve had those conversations with him and it’s about getting him ready for a full season at fullback, which he hasn’t had yet.
He hasn’t trained before early or mid-January since he came to the club and to have him doing the workload he’s doing at the moment, that is going to set him up for a really good season.
People get jobs in the press and I respect that’s (their) opinion. But when you see Latrell day in, day out and see what he brings to the team, people forget our season started going pear-shaped when he got injured.
And that’s not only about what he brings to the team but how the team feels when he is in it. He took a lot of pressure on his shoulders when he was injured, which wasn’t his fault. I’m excited about what he can do but I’m excited about what his teammates can feel him doing during the pre-season, and getting down and dirty with the boys is really important.
FK:You’ve added Jack Wighton to your side, why did you want Jack?
JD: From the outside, I saw a guy who competes. He’s a guy who is fit physically and he handles the game really well. So I wanted to bring someone with his experience in our outside backs. Isaiah Tass, Campbell Graham and Tyrone Munroe... even Latrell, they are all young. They are all 25 and under, and people forget that.
So to bring in a 30-year-old that has played at the highest level and understands what it takes to get to that level, was important for us.
We hadn’t made a signing for a couple of years. I was keen to get a marquee signing in and when I found out Jack was available, he fit the bill really well.
FK: What’s your positional, and long-term plan, for Jack?
JD: I don’t have a long-term plan for Jack. I just know Jack is going to make us a better footy team. At the moment, if I was to pick him, I’d pick him at left centre.
I’m going to spend time in the pre-season to see where Jack fits best.
What I love about Jack is that he is committed to play wherever the team needs him to play. For a player of his stature to have that mindset, that rubs off on the rest of the team. He’s got to bring a lot to the team, that before he got here we didn’t realise it was what we needed.
FK: Tell us why you also signed former Manly prop Sean Keppie?
JD: Physicality, he’s a big middle. He loves the physical side of the game. I spoke about raising the floor, I don’t think he knows where his ceiling is yet and for me as a coach that is exciting to help him mature and come into the best years of his career and hopefully he can do that at South Sydney.
FK:What are you hoping to see from young halfback Lachlan Ilias in 2024?
JD: For me it’s confidence and the ability to manage a team on the back foot. You only get that through experience. Lachy got the highs of the NRL in the first half of last year but he also got the lows. He’s such a mature kid and a pleasure to coach. He can physically handle the rigours of the NRL.
He’s going into his third year. I want to see him back himself and have a voice and he’s been great in pre-season so far. He’s strong too, so we’re looking at him implementing his running game a bit more and implementing his style on the team, rather than the bloke who just gets the ball to Cody Walker.
I want to see his natural ability come to the fore a little bit. I’m confident he can do that.
FK:Lachlan copped a lot of criticism last year but you came out and very publicly defended suggestions the club was wrong to let Adam Reynolds go to focus on Lachlan. Why did you feel compelled to do that?
JD: I feel like that about any of the players. I don’t like the spotlight the media, and social media in particular puts on individuals.
I think we scapegoat players too easily. We play a team sport - when we are winning, we share the spoils together. And when we are losing, we should share that low together.
Unfortunately, that’s not how it works and I think Lachy is targeted because Adam Reynolds is no longer at the club and that puts a target on a young kid.
But again, I can’t credit Lachy’s maturity in how he handles that.
FK:Cody Walker is another one who attracted some attention. He’s an emotional player, do you think it gets the better of him on the field?
JD: It’s part of who he is but it can’t come at the expense of his own performance and if it frustrates him and stops him playing the footy he can, he’s such an influential player for us and we love what he brings to the club, but that’s been a work in progress for Cody.
But he’s come back fit, committed and hungry to improve and that’s all you can ask for.
For me too, it’s about staying consistent, level-headed as well, and that will help our players stay in the place as well.
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