Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
Tallis Duncan and David Fifita look set to get first crack in the back row for the Rabbitohs this season, while a former rep star has been training in a new role as Souths look to bounce back from two rough years.
Fifita has already impressed his new teammates after he made the move from the Titans following a mixed stint on the Gold Coast.
He is expected to start on one edge, with Duncan set to be rewarded for a breakout 2025 campaign with the other starting spot.
The 23-year-old defied the injury curse at the club to play all 24 games, with Duncan scoring nine tries and looking comfortable on the edge after starting the year in the middle and coming off the bench.
“I spoke to Wayne (coach Wayne Bennett) and we had a conversation,” he said.
“He sees me at the moment playing in the back row. I really enjoyed playing in the back row at the back end of last year. so I’m really happy there.”
It looms as a potent one-two punch on the edges, with Fifita set to start in the back row where he does his best work.
“He’s a beast,” Duncan said.
“He’s everything that you see and he’s had a mad pre-season. I’m proud to call him one of my mates now, and I’m really excited to see him play.”
Duncan excelled on the left last year where the Rabbitohs will unleash Latrell Mitchell at centre now that Jye Gray has emerged as the club’s long-term fullback.
That means Jack Wighton will shift to the right side where he’ll partner Campbell Graham.
“We’ve got a strong left edge with ‘Trell’ and a few of the boys there, so I’ve been doing a bit of work on the right edge,” he said ahead of this weekend’s All Stars game.
“I’ve not played much right edge throughout my career, so it’s good to train my brain again to work on the opposite side of the field.”
It’s been a rough few years for the Rabbitohs who have dealt with a horror injury toll and finished in the bottom four in 2024 and 2025.
But everyone is fit and firing again, with skipper Cameron Murray praising Bennett for creating a culture at the club that has made life easier for all involved.
“It’s nice having Wayne there because he takes a lot of stress off your shoulders,” he said.
“You trust him with everything. You trust him with handling outside noise, you trust him with handling internal conversations and driving the culture that he wants to set at this club.
“All we need to focus on as players is playing our best footy. It’s a simple, narrow focus for us, and it’s the type of focus that successful teams and players have.
“There are no excuses now to not play our best footy.”
