Latrell Mitchell has sent out an ominous warning to the rest of the NRL after a dominant performance inspired the Rabbitohs to a win over the Bulldogs in a thriller.
After a Paul Vaughan try in the 66th minute had South Sydney trailing Canterbury by six points, Mitchell kicked it into overdrive in the final 15 minutes, setting up two of the Rabbitohs’ three tries that followed in the 36-28 win.
The Bunnies skipper finished the match with three try assists and ran for 137 metres while scoring a try of his own after he bulldozed former Origin teammate Josh Addo-Carr in the 60th minute.
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The frightening performance from the 25-year-old caused his ex-teammate Cooper Cronk to compare him to last year’s Dally M Medal winner Tom Trbojevic.
“That is scary. That is intimidating,” Cronk said on Fox League’s coverage.
“He went away for 12 weeks, got his body right and his mind right. I’ve played with and against Latrell and I’ve never seen him so committed, so dialled in.
“He literally wants to throw South Sydney on his back and it’s a scary sign for the rest of the competition because that and what he’s done the last two weeks, that makes South Sydney scary towards the back end of this season.
“You talk about Tom Trbojevic … he’s arguably been the best player on the field in these three games back. In terms of what South Sydney can do in the finals, absolutely he can have an impact.”
Mitchell left Cronk and co-commentator Andrew Voss lost for words with a sensational no-look try assist for one of hat-trick hero Alex Johnston’s tries, while also nailing four of his seven conversion attempts.
The win improved the Rabbitohs to 4-1 on the last five matches, with Mitchell having played in three since returning from a long-term hamstring injury that saw him miss this year’s State of Origin campaign.
South Sydney currently sits seventh on the NRL ladder after 18 rounds, with a 10-7 record in their 17 matches this season. The Rabbitohs are two points clear of the eighth-placed Manly Sea Eagles.
Mitchell and the rampant Rabbitohs will look to extend their run of form when they host the slumping Melbourne Storm at Accor Stadium next Saturday night.