South Sydney Rabbitohs

With the scores locked 22-22 and golden point beckoning it was tireless back-rower Liam Martin who surged over from close range to secure the Panthers' 19th win of the season.

After a ferocious start defensively the Panthers were able to cash in when Stephen Crichton swooped on a scrappy Damien Cook pass and raced 60 metres to score. The centre converted his own try for a 6-0 lead after just four minutes.

With Latrell Mitchell causing havoc at the back and Alex Johnston scoring tries for fun, South Sydney have won six of their past seven matches (including one Golden Point defeat) to find themselves just two points outside the top four.

The 2021 Telstra Premiership Grand Final rematch comes in the midst of a challenging run for the cardinal and myrtle, with games against the Cowboys (second) and Roosters (eighth) set to follow Thursday's heavyweight showdown.

With Alex Johnston and Cody Walker grabbing doubles the Rabbitohs beat the Eels for the second time in seven weeks to reinforce their premiership credentials.

The Rabbitohs got the ball rolling in the fifth minute when Damien Cook found Walker from close range and the five-eighth caught the Eels defence flat footed on their own line.

Walker got across the line again in the 11th minute but the came loose as he was attempting to ground it and the Eels were off the hook.

The Eels won without Mitchell Moses last week and crucially showed an ability to back up from a big win the previous week, something which has been lacking for them in 2022, and will have taken confidence from overcoming the Sea Eagles in the final half hour of the match.

South Sydney were always in control against the Warriors and were able to manage the minutes of a couple of key men as a result of being well up midway through the second half.  

Murray set up the first three tries of the match, while Mitchell scored two and laid on two others as a ruthless Souths side leapfrogged the Broncos and Roosters into sixth position on the Telstra Premiership ladder.

So dominant was Murray that the Rabbitohs captain had run more than 100 metres by the time second-rower Keaon Koloamatangi scored his side's fourth try in the 21st minute and he finished with a game high 191 metres.

With matches against heavyweights the Eels, Panthers, Cowboys and Roosters to come after this weekend's assignment the Rabbitohs can't afford to slip up  against a team that took them to the wire in Magic Round.

The Rabbitohs led 26-6 at half-time in that match at Suncorp Stadium but clocked off to concede four tries in 15 minutes and almost let the victory slip away.

Finals are out of the question for the Warriors but they'll happy play spoiler to any contenders who dare take them lightly.

Cronulla matched - and for large periods outplayed - Penrith in round 19, and were in the match right up until Jarome Luai's 77th-minute try put the game beyond reach.

The Rabbitohs head to PointsBet Stadium in red-hot form, having won their last four matches including a 24-12 victory over the Storm last weekend. 

The two clubs have met just once a year for the past six seasons, with South Sydney winning four of those clashes. 

Latrell Mitchell starred for the Rabbitohs and provided the game-breaking moment when he sent Alex Johnston over for his second on the left edge with scores locked at 28-28 close to fulltime. 

Johnston crossed for a third two minutes later to ensure the Rabbitohs snatched a win that throughout the evening looked as though the Bulldogs were on their way to causing an upset. 

Both sides traded three tries each in the second half to set up a tied ball game before Johnston crossed for the third hat-trick of his season and 10th of his career.

After giving the Panthers a run for their money in round 13 the Bulldogs stunned the Eels in round 14 and beat the Tigers the following week before going toe to toe with the Sharks in atrocious conditions at CommBank Stadium in a creditable 12-point loss.

The Rabbitohs sit seventh after overcoming the loss of a number of key players to down Newcastle, but with games against the Storm, Sharks, Eels, Panthers and Cowboys to come, they can't afford any slip-ups against lower ranked opponents.

In the final nine rounds the Knights face only two sides currently inside the top eight, so there's good reason for optimism on the back of Friday's drubbing of the Titans.

One of those sides inside the eight is Souths, who head to Newcastle full of confidence after Mitchell's impressive return in the win over the Eels.

Both sides are missing key men on Origin duty but there's enough quality on show to suggest this will be a cracking contest in front of a big crowd in Knights homeland.