The Rabbitohs have endured a nightmare injury toll in 2025, highlighting a “gigantic error” made by the club’s retention and recruitment staff ahead of the 2022 season.
South Sydney made the decision to let veteran halfback Adam Reynolds walk, only coming to the table with a one-year contract extension instead of the two he was seeking.
The 35-year-old departed for the Broncos, having been left disillusioned by the Rabbitohs’ belief his body couldn’t withstand the week in, week out rigours of the NRL long-term.
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Now, according to veteran rugby league reporter Phil Rothfield, Reynolds has well and truly busted that myth while South Sydney battle with an ever-growing casualty ward.
“Souths need an investigation into their injuries, they really do. Their sports science, their high-performance. A lot of them have happened at training,” Rothfield said on the Big Sports Breakfast.
“Whoever on Souths high performance staff four years ago advised their recruitment team that Adam Reynolds was a risk longer than a year has made a gigantic error in my view.”
In a column for The Daily Telegraph, Rothfield laid out a number of damning statistics.
Since Reynolds made his move north, he has played 74 games for the Broncos, which equates to 20 more that Souths fullback Latrell Mitchell and only four less than Cody Walker.
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The veteran playmaker has also recorded 78 try assists, 600 points, 3490 possessions and 30,412 kicking metres, more than both Mitchell and Walker in each category.
“I worked out he has played 20 more games since then than Latrell Mitchell,” Rothfield said.
“He has played 5,592 minutes since Souths said he was a year-by-year proposition.”
Alongside Mitchell and Walker, Brandon Smith, Campbell Graham, Cameron Murray, Jayden Sullivan, Tevita Tatola, Keaon Koloamatangi, Mikaele Ravalawa and Davvy Moale are all sidelined due to injuries.
And while Rothfield believes the Rabbitohs have to investigate their sports science practices, a bigger issue could also be at play.
“The season is too long isn’t it, 27 rounds… it’s a lot of football. 24 games, plus your Origins and your Test matches,” Laurie Daley said.
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“You’ve got to fit them all in somewhere, I understand that. But I don’t think we need to be playing as many games in the NRL.”
Rothfield agreed, calling for rugby league powerbrokers to consider the welfare of “elite” players who often take the field year round.
“It is for the elite players, for the players who play finals every year. They play State of Origin, they play trial matches, they play the All Stars game,” Rothfield said.
“As I said, they then have an international series. Then they got their six weeks off, then they get an interrupted pre-season.
“You’ve got to look at the welfare and you’ve got to look at injuries across the competition. Look at Souths. Latrell (Mitchell), (Cody) Walker, (Cameron) Murray, Campbell Graham, Keaon Koloamatangi.”
