The Souffs/Roosters comparison is interesting, I've commented on it before.
In the Rusty-commissioned Souffs puff-piece “The Book Of Feuds”, there’s a line in the Roosters chapter suggesting that the Roosters “had lost their soul”. Now, if Nick Politis had nothing better to do on weekends he could offer some unknown freelance (aka unemployed) writer a few coins to write his own stroke-book, and he could very easily plagiarise that same phrase in describing the Rabbitohs. They’ve lost their soul.
Where is it? When these apparently imminent premierships roll in, where will the so-(laughably)called pride of the league find their pride?
Their captain, their leader, is a johnny-come-lately Bulldog whose only decent season in 07 (leading to a rare finals appearance – the Bunnies sole September sojourn in 20 years) was enough to earn him not only the captaincy but seemingly a four year paid vacation. He’s now a has-been at 28. Surely once that mammoth contract runs out he’ll be granted the same fond farewell as his predecessors, those beloved former Souths captains Peter Cusack and Bryan Fletcher - i.e sh*t-canned and sent to England.
The coaching conveyor belt continues on unabated. John Lang, a two year veteran in the head coach hot seat of Souffs, has mercifully been advised of his termination well in advance. Jason Taylor (07-09), Shaun McRae (05-06), Arthur Kitinas (04), Paul Langmack (03-04) and Craig Coleman (02) weren’t so fortunate. If a coach typically provides direction for a club, then it’s no surprise that somewhere in that aimless maze of coaching schizophrenia, that the Souffs soul has been lost - along with countless, countless games of football.
The playing group, surely, are where the soul is at! That abundant, fertile nursery of local juniors, all of them coming up through the grades together and making the big time. Those promising youngsters who came into the NRL during the Souffs dark days (umm, I may need to be more specific here... but carry on) who are now a few years older and have still done pretty much nothing in the NRL. John Sutton, a player who has remarkably managed to tread water his entire career. He’s inconsistent, they say. No, he’s just average, we say. Then there’s the other local juniors... [scans list] oh yes – Nathan Merritt. What a good guy at scoring tries he is. Also loves to point fingers at cameras after scoring tries. Not so good at tackling or making rep teams, but loves to point fingers at racist rep selectors after missing those teams. Who else. McPherson, Falloon, Corrigan. Who? Craig Wing! No he was canned. David Fa’alogo – Mascot junior! Not Jason Taylor’s favourite player, but he was canned because they signed the butterfingered Pom. Buddy Gordon, Eddie Paea – hmm both better halfbacks than Chris Sandow but no. Beau Champion. Ahh yes, Beau Champion. Here we have the latest chapter in the tale of latter-day South Sydney soul destruction. A cocky kid from the very nucleus of Bunnies heartland – La Perouse. A raw player, patiently slow-cooked into a genuine first grade centre. Yet, here he is, being treated like nothing more than a cell on an Excel spreadsheet. Ctrl-X. The sums weren’t adding up. Ctrl-X. Rusty says he’ll never do chequebook rugby league like the Roosters, but Excel spreadsheet rugby league is worse. At least in a cheque there is an inherent promise, and the promise is kept. In the new soulless Bunnies, you’re only a Ctrl-X away from being unceremoniously dumped when something better comes along.
I think if the current group of players did some soul-searching they may all eventually follow the sage advice offered to Joe Galuvao, when Rusty wanted to Ctrl-X him with a year left on his contract – quit Souths and join a seminary.
