Ryan Papenhuyzen kicked the match-winner – but South Sydney pair Alex Johnston and Latrell Mitchell were the real stars.
Storm fullback Papenhuyzen slotted a field-goal in golden point to seal an entertaining 25-24 victory over Souths on Saturday night.
It was the fourth straight loss for the Bunnies – but also their fourth straight defeat against a team sitting in the top four on the NRL ladder.
They threw everything at Melbourne, and Mitchell had the chance to kick a sideline conversion to put the Bunnies ahead with three minutes remaining in regulation time. He also attempted a 45m two-point field-goal attempt at full-time, only to push it to the right.
The best thing about Souths was Johnston scoring four tries to take his career tally to 206 – just six shy of Ken Irvine’s long-standing try-scoring record of 212.
The way Johnston was getting across the line so regularly early in the second half, Souths officials would have started realising they need to start fast-tracking party plans for when he does set a new mark.
Johnston was rated an outside chance to go past Irvine’s 212 tries at the end of the year, but more likely the start of next season.
But with nine tries in his past four games, including four against the Storm, Johnston is on track to break the record that has stood since 1973 in the next month. At only 30, Johnston can set a record that might never be broken.
His final try came from a Jahrome Hughes intercept, while the first three were a result of lovely Mitchell cut-out passes.
How many tries has Johnston scored courtesy of Mitchell? How many did he score when standing on the outside of fellow Indigenous Souths legend Greg Inglis earlier in his career?
“I said to him at half-time, ‘you’ve got another try in you’, and he said, ‘I’ve got another couple in me’,” Souths coach Wayne Bennett said about Johnston.
“He’s pretty pleased with himself, and we are, too.
“We’re negotiating with him [about 2026]. We believe that will happen, but it hasn’t happened yet. There’s a bit more negotiating to be done.”
One criticism of Johnston as he’s crept a little deeper into his career is his body shape and whether he has the ability to bust tackles early in the sets like most modern-day wingers are required to do. But the bloke has an uncanny knack of getting across the try line.
If Johnston and the milestone is a welcome talking point at Heffron Park, what about the form of Mitchell?
Alex Johnston helped himself to four tries for South Sydney.Credit: Getty Images
Mitchell was quiet by his own standards for NSW on Wednesday night in Perth, but played with a lot of energy and like a true leader for his club three nights later.
The way he knows exactly when to pull the trigger for Johnston cannot be under-estimated. Then what about his kick, early in the tackle count, to send Tyrone Munro over for the final try?
“He’s a special player, he was special tonight – so many players are missing, but he’s been standing up for us,” Bennett said.
“I didn’t want to play him tonight, but with Jye Gray out with a broken thumb, I had to.”
The headlines should have been about Johnston and Mitchell – not the Storm, nor Papenhuyzen, nor coach Craig Bellamy who made it a 15th straight win over his Souths counterpart Bennett.
Melbourne were ordinary in the first half, completing at a tick over 60 per cent. It was hard to think of the last time they were so poor with the ball.
They scored a couple of tries in as many sets through Harry Grant and Jahrome Hughes, and it looked like being one of those nights where the Storm racked up a half-century for fun.
But they continued to invite Souths into the game, and the home side hit back through Johnston.
Had Souths been a bit more patient themselves, they could have made life more uncomfortable for the visitors.
Johnston was great. And Mitchell. But yet Melbourne won. Good ol’ rugba leeg.
