Rabbitohs v Eels preview

South Sydney Rabbitohs v Parramatta Eels
ANZ Stadium - Friday 7:45pm

Who can bounce back to form?

They say a week is a long time in Rugby League, but how about two months? The Eels and Rabbitohs clashed in Round 4 at Pirtek Stadium, with the Bunnies coming in undefeated and Parramatta full of beans and ready to cause some damage in this year's premiership. Since then, both sides have suffered a huge fall from grace - a string of losses amongst a lone win over the Dragons has South Sydney losing touch with the lead pack, while the Eels have slid all the way to the bottom with just three wins from ten games.

For the Bunnies it's a case of no Reynolds, no luck. Without their classy half, the Rabbitohs are struggling to get results on the board. His injury in Round 5 against Canterbury has lead to instability in the middle for the hosts of this weekend's clash, and a fresh injury concern just a fortnight ago against the Dragons has the red and green faithful worried. Couple that with the omission of Greg Inglis through Origin duty and they could be in some serious strife.

Parramatta's a whole other kettle of fish. Board drama, fresh news stories about salary cap breaches left over from Ricky Stuart, Chris Sandow, urine samples - and that's just off the field. On the field they're battling controversy from refereeing decisions and indifferent form periods. A cruel golden point loss to the Warriors last Saturday capped it off and saw the blue and gold boys fall to last place.

Last meeting: Round 4 2015 - Parramatta Eels 29 South Sydney Rabbitohs 16
It's stunning to think this win just seven rounds ago was considered by the Eels' faithful and many NRL pundits as the start of a positive era. The Rabbitohs fell to their first loss to a classy and enthusiastic Parramatta side, but have shown little of the same form since.

Who to watch: Having been overlooked for a Maroon jumper, Chris McQueen will be out to re-stake his claim for Origin consideration for game two. Together with George Burgess he'll need to lead the Souths pack if the Bunnies have any chance of reversing their current form slump.

In the Round 4 clash between these clubs, John Folau secured his debut for the blue-and-gold - this week he's back in the lineup at wing after the omission of Will Hopoate through Origin duty. The Eels will be hoping his presence on the edge inspires some movement and enthusiasm that's been lacking lately.

The favourite: For no other reason than the fact they're reigning premiers and still boast some quality in key positions, the Bunnies are better backed for this clash.

My tip: Despite the Rabbitohs' favouritism it's hard not to think the Eels are about to come good. Apart from Hopoate they escape Origin relatively unscathed - while the Bunnies have Inglis out amongst a host of other injury concerns. For that reason an energetic Parramatta might pick up a sneaky win here. Eels by 4.

1. Alex Johnston 2. Joel Reddy 3. Dylan Walker 4. Bryson Goodwin 5. Aaron Gray 6. John Sutton 7. Luke Keary 8. George Burgess 9. Cameron McInnes 10. David Tyrrell 11. Ben Lowe 12. Chris McQueen 13. Jason Clark
Interchange: 14. Issac Luke 15. Nathan Brown 16. Tim Grant 17. Thomas Burgess 18. Daryl Millard 19. Chris Grevsmuhl

1. Reece Robinson 2. Semi Radradra 3. Ryan Morgan 4. Brad Takairangi 5. John Folau 6. Corey Norman 7. Luke Kelly 8. Danny Wicks 9. Nathan Peats 10. Tim Mannah 11. Manu Ma'u 12. Tepai Moeroa 13. Anthony Watmough
Interchange: 14. Junior Paulo 15. Richie Fa'aoso 16. Peni Terepo 17. Pauli Pauli

Referees: Jared Maxwell, Chris James; Sideline Officials: Russell Turner, Adam Reid; Video Referees: Steve Chiddy, Ben Galea;

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