Rabbitohs stars Keaon Koloamatangi and Campbell Graham hoping to break ‘frustrating’ curse in 2023

It’s the elephant in the room over the last half decade – as the pressure mounts, South Sydney continues to crumble.

After four losses in the pre-finals and a heartbreaking loss in the grand final to Penrith, the club have entered ‘always the bridesmaid never the bride’ territory on the pitch.

In those five years, the Rabbitohs have had three different coaches, and none of them have been able to bring home the Provan-Summons Trophy to their adoring fan base.

So the question is – how are they changing it and going all the way in 2023?

MORE: South Sydney Rabbitoh’s 2023 season preview

Speak with The sports news Ahead of the start of the NRL season, second rower Keaon Koloamatangi admitted the demons of previous seasons were quietly weighing on the group.

“We don’t really talk about it, but probably everyone is the same – that gives me an extra boost,” he said.

“It’s a bit frustrating that we’ve been beaten in the grand finals or the grand finals so many times.

“It shows that we are right there and doing the right things to get into the preliminary round, but we just need to tweak a few things to get that preliminary round win and get back to the grand finals.

“We have little mistakes in games and we don’t start like we should and it’s catching up to us again. We want to be ruthless and have that attitude when we go into big games and play hard.

“Because we don’t have any new signings, we know what everyone is about and we don’t have to bring anyone new into the team, so we can just build on last year.”

With a star-studded roster throughout the park, the Souths don’t need to change much in terms of their playing style and the club have taken the bold step of not signing a single player in their top roster in the off-season.

Representative center Campbell Graham believes her hopes for prime minister could be based on improving the mental aspect of the game.

“Maybe a change in mindset and an understanding of how we want games to end,” he said.

“We have to mentally prepare better for these big games.”

Jason Demetriou inspires confidence in the unchanged Bunnies

In his first year in charge, Jason Demetriou proved exactly why the Rabbitohs were willing to trust a rookie coach to replace Wayne Bennett – a formula that has previously led to disasters at the Dragons and Knights.

After some shaky moments early and mid-year, Demetriou managed to get the Bunnies clicking at the right time of year and keep them a game away from a big endgame.

Koloamatangi was full of praise for the sophomore head coach and the confidence he has placed in their stable playing group.

“We haven’t had any signings and that probably shows he believes in the squad,” said Koloamatangi.

“He’s really good at instilling a lot of confidence in individuals and I feel like I’ve built my game up like that over the last year. He gave me confidence and a lot of freedom.

“This pre-season he just reiterated the importance of defending – that’s probably why we fell apart in the preliminary round against Penrith last year.

“He wants us to stay in the top 3 defensive teams in the competition and it’s all about attitude… we’ve worked a lot on it and found a reason for why we’re doing what we’re doing.”

Demetriou’s influence on the group was profound and the 47-year-old was able to bring out the best in the likes of Koloamatangi, Graham, Isaiah Tass and Tevita Tatola.

When asked whether or not Demetriou changed his approach during his second preseason, Graham said The sports news It was more like the Rabbitohs winning their 22nd title.

“He hasn’t changed all that much – there are areas where we need to improve if we want to take the next step and win the competition,” he said.

“Our focus is on our process and how we want to play our footy – winning competitions and those things are far away, and JD has reinforced the idea of ​​sticking with our process.

“Not too much has changed in our squad – everyone here understands the process and the principles so this pre-season has gone very smoothly.”

Cameron Murray is growing into the captaincy

Not only did the Rabbitohs have a brand new head coach in 2022, they also entered the season with a new captain in homegrown junior Cameron Murray.

The NSW and Australian lock-forward had been slated for senior leadership since it emerged in 2017 and, with the capital C next to its name, has already proved a win.

One man who knows Murray better than most is Koloamatangi. The pair play Junior Footy for Mascot and Junior Rep for Souths together, and he admits there’s no one more worthy of the role.

“Cam’s not really a big talker, he’s more of a leader by his actions and you can see that on the field…to me, that’s the leader I want – someone who will do the dirty work with you and lead by example,” he said.

“I feel like somehow he’s finding his voice, he’s just a young captain and he’s got Cody [Walker] and cookies [Damien Cook] who are much older than him, so it’s probably a bit overwhelming that he has to speak in front of them.

“He’s doing a good job and we all believe in him and we always knew he was going to do it. I’ve always known what he was about and I wouldn’t want anyone else to be my captain.”

Attack wins games, defense wins Premierships

If the Rabbitohs go a step or two further this season and lift the trophy, their defense will matter.

It’s no secret that the Cardinal and Myrtle can score at will, especially with players like Cody Walker and Latrell Mitchell at left flank, but their tendency to drop points was their downfall at times.

Koloamatangi showed that his defensive structures and attitude have become a major focus this preseason.

“We want to be one of the best defensive teams in the championship,” he said.

“We’ve always known in recent years and since I’ve been here that we have so many points in us.

“Most of our key positions have points and we have to support the spine and the ballers by doing our job on defense and giving them the ball in the right positions.”