South Sydney have honoured John Sattler in perfect style, with Lachlan Ilias kicking the first field goal of his career to sink Manly 13-12 in golden point.
With Sattler’s family in attendance and co-owner Russell Crowe also at Accor Stadium on Saturday, Ilias nailed a shot from 25 metres out in the third minute of golden point.
It came after Manly made a crucial error on their opening set of extra time, when Josh Aloiai put the ball down under the posts and gifted possession to the Rabbitohs.
The win allowed the Rabbitohs to go back to an even record of 2-2 as they consigned the Sea Eagles to their first loss of 2023.
Souths, wearing commemorative jerseys just days after Sattler’s death on Monday at age 80, did it in a way that would have made their famous old boy proud.
Missing six of their pack through injuries, they outlasted the Sea Eagles in a gruelling affair that befitted the club’s most famous No.13.
Cameron Murray fought through 80 minutes in the No.13 despite appearing gassed from midway through the first half.
Keaon Koloamatangi also played 78 minutes, with the vast majority of it spent in the middle after being moved there from the edge due to the injury crisis.
Within minutes of their win, the crowd fell silent as footage of Sattler’s 1970 grand-final performance against Manly with a broken jaw played on the big screens.
“Looking up at the scoreboard, at 13 points, obviously John’s number,” Souths coach Jason Demetriou said.
“To have his family here was pretty special.
“This is a massive effort for our club. We won eight games in our club today. That’s a reflection to what Satts meant to the club.
“And for our club to win all the grades, it’s a great tribute.”
Earlier, Cody Walker scored both of the Rabbitohs’ tries to keep them in the match.
His first came when he chased through on a Damien Cook grubber kick, and went around three opponents to get the ball down within centimetres of the dead-ball line.
Then, with Souths down 12-6, he swung around to the right and got outside Brad Parker to narrow the margin to two before a penalty goal levelled the scores.
In a match expected to be a shootout between fullbacks Latrell Mitchell and Tom Trbojevic, both had subdued nights as defence dominated attack.
Trbojevic showed signs of poking his nose through at points in Manly’s attack and was denied a try from a questionable forward-pass call, but was never able to break into full flight in the slippery conditions.
Instead, it was Haumole Olakau’atu who produced the most magic for the visitors before ending the night on report for a leg twist on Damien Cook.
The second-rower showed the skills of a winger by leaping above Isaiah Tass to take a Cherry-Evans kick one handed and get it down.
Cherry-Evans was then able to give his side a 12-6 lead at the break when he intercepted a Cameron Murray ball and went 70 metres to score.
The Manly halfback had a chance to win it for his side on the siren after Souths fought back to 12-12, only for his shot at a field goal to be charged down by Cook.
“We wanted to recognise the occasion with regards to John Sattler’s passing,” Manly coach Anthony Seibold said.
“One of the ways we respect John Sattler and his legacy for Souths and the game is by bringing a really strong performance and effort.
“And I think everyone would have seen that.”
© AAP 2023
