Rabbitohs weigh up future Cairns commitments
SOUTH Sydney Rabbitohs will keep the door open to future multi-year deals after confirmation the foundation NRL club will bring the first premiership fixture to Cairns since 2018.
The Rabbitohs will take on major rivals, St George-Illawarra at Barlow Park as part of Round 24, and is scheduled for a 3pm kick-off on Saturday, August 12.
Discussions for this fixture started when the entire South Sydney squad arrived in Cairns for a preseason camp in February this year.
The NRL asked the Rabbitohs to play their three regional clubs during the FIFA Women’s World Cup due to the lack of available stadia in Sydney, a request CEO Blake Solly was happy to accommodate. “We’ve played competition games in Cairns, and had a wonderful experience with Cairns and the trial against the Cowboys earlier this year,” Solly said.
“The playing squad trip to Yarrabah was a highlight for the club on and off the field.
“The opportunity with Women’s World Cup and some of the disruption that will have with stadia availability in Sydney allowed us to look to Cairns again.”
While this is a one-off deal, Solly said a multi-year propmoney, osition would be looked at if it’s the “right decision”.
And a multi-year deal for NRL content would go some way to achieving Cairns mayor Bob Manning’s goal of improving the quality of life in the region. When asked about this fixture, and the millions of dollars it could inject into the economy, Cr Manning instead spoke of how the council has worked to bring content to the region.
“It is (great), but these things aren’t about making they’re about bringing a quality of life to Cairns, and we’ve tried to do that all along,” Cr Manning said.
“For the past 12 years we’ve tried to get NRL games here if we can.
“The best we’ve been supported is by the Rabbitohs, and that’s not surprising as we have strong links.
“We have a tremendous relationship with South Sydney.”
Cr Manning has made no secret of his love for the Bunnies over the years, and he is again delighted to welcome rugby league’s most successful club to the Far North.
The region shares a unique and strong bond with the Rabbitohs.
The foundation club brought premiership games to Cairns for six straight seasons, from 2013 to 2018 (winning three), and took on the Cowboys in a pre-season fixture at Barlow Park in 2022.
Former Northern Pride CEO Brock Schaefer and coach Jason Demetriou are now the Rabbitohs’ chief operating officer and head coach respectively.
The duo won the Queensland Cup and inaugural NRL State Championship in 2014 before being snapped up by NRL clubs. Souths brought their entire squad to the Far North for a week-long pre-season camp in 2022.