Wild brawl mars final minute of South Sydney’s win over Manly
A final minute brawl couldn’t take the gloss of Souths’ 26-12 win over Manly at Brookvale Oval, although Rabbitohs back-rower Jaydn Su’a may regret his involvement.
Su’a was sin-binned, which was academic given the state of the game, but the incident was also placed on report.
The melee started when Souths centre Dane Gagai took exception to Manly’s Kieran Foran, who attempted to spoil a quick play-the-ball.
Some harmless pushing and shoving from the pair ensued, before teammates became involved, with Su’a one of the first.
Manly winger Reuben Garrick was left with a bloody nose after order had been restored, but the whole incident didn’t seem to worry Rabbitohs coach Wayne Bennett.
“I was in the changeroom on the drink when that happened,” he said, with a smirk.
“So, I’ve got no idea.”
The veteran coach was guarded in his praise for halfback Adam Reynolds, who was outstanding before leaving the field with concussion.
Reynolds is off contract at the end of 2020, with the club only offering a one-year extension, while the local junior wants a longer deal.
“He played good, but he had a lot of mates playing pretty good as well, but he certainly stepped up for us.”
Asked if the dreadful conditions at Brookvale were made for Reynolds, Bennett was quick to dismiss the question.
“No, I don’t think so,” he said.
“That’s the conditions on the day, he’s played over 200 games, so he’s played in all types of conditions.
“He was just on his game, that’s the key part.”
Bennett said he expects to have Reynolds back for next week, although he’ll need to pass the concussion protocols to play against the Roosters on Friday.
