His side might have made it seven in a row with the 34-20 win over Canberra, but South Sydney coach Wayne Bennett is far from satisfied.
The Rabbitohs again confirmed they are one of the teams to beat this season, continuing to rack up the victories even with star fullback Latrell Mitchell missing through suspension.
When asked what he liked about his side’s winning streak being extended in the nation’s capital, Bennett simply replied "not much".
"We are just mentally not strong enough, we were good for a month there, but we’ve just gone back into the old habits," Bennett said.
Match: Raiders v Rabbitohs
Round 8 -
home Team
Raiders
9th Position
away Team
Rabbitohs
3rd Position
Venue: GIO Stadium, Canberra
Despite a huge clash coming next week at Stadium Australia against the Storm, Bennett said more analysis will have to be completed as to why they did not put in a full 80-minute effort.
"I’m not worried about next week, I’m just trying to get through tonight, I’m just disappointed with the way we played," he said.
After reports emerged on Thursday night that Souths halfback Adam Reynolds had been offered a lucrative three-year deal by the Cronulla Sharks, Bennett was in no mood for discussing the future of his star No.7.
"Ask again and you’ll get the same answer, I’m just one [person] at the club, I’m not the club," he offered.
On the injury front, Cameron Murray left the field with a minor ankle injury and failed to return but is only expected to miss one week at most while Mark Nicolls passed his HIA protocols and should be fine to take on the Storm.
Another shift left, another try for South Sydney
Down 16-14 at half-time, Dane Gagai drew first blood for the Rabbitohs after the break, after the Souths centre capitalised on number advantage on their left edge.
Souths again found success on their left edge with the Raiders cover defence coming across too late as Johnston scored his second as Souths started to take control at 26-16.
"It’s just the way we play out football, we feel we can score on both sides of the field if we get it right so we didn’t particularly single out Canberra’s edge, or one edge over another," Bennett said of his team’s success on their left edge against the Raiders.
The Rabbitohs took a stranglehold on the game when Keaon Koloamatangi burst through a gap before he off-loaded to Jaydn Su’A to make the margin 16 with 20 minutes remaining.
A lead they would not give up despite the best efforts of Raiders five-eighth Jack Wighton, who crossed twice in the space of five minutes only to have both tries denied for obstruction.
While the Rabbitohs prepare for the Storm in a blockbuster opening to round nine, Ricky Stuart and the Raiders will look to their fortunes around when the Knights travel to GIO Stadium in the Saturday afternoon game.
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