The St George Illawarra Dragons have suffered a 32-14 defeat to the South Sydney Rabbitohs in the Charity Shield at ANZ Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The Rabbitohs scored first points in the 10th minute through hooker Robbie Farah who crossed from dummy-half.
Souths fullback Alex Johnston added another four-pointer for the Rabbitohs when he scored six minutes later.
Dragons prop Russell Packer signalled his return from shoulder and hip injuries with a crucial try in the 23rd minute.
The Rabbitohs replied four minutes later through Siosifa Talakai, but the Dragons weren't going to die wondering as recruit Nene Macdonald capitalised on magic hands from fullback Josh Dugan to cut the deficit back to 16-10.
Unfortunately the first half ended on a sour note for the Red V as Will Matthews was stretchered off after suffering a dislocated right hip.
A ridiculous banana kick from Damien Cook saw Braidon Burns kick-start proceedings for the Rabbitohs in the second half.
Four-pointers to Angus Crichton and Burns again saw the Rabbitohs jump out to an unreachable 32-10 lead heading into the final 10 minutes of the game.
Veteran winger Jason Nightingale's try in the final two minutes cut the Rabbitohs' lead again but by then it was too late for the Red V.
South Sydney Rabbitohs 32 (Braidon Burns 2, Robbie Farah, Alex Johnston, Siosifa Talakai, Angus Crichton tries; Adam Reynolds 4 goals) defeated St George Illawarra Dragons 14 (Russell Packer, Nene Macdonald, Jason Nightingale tries; Gareth Widdop goal) at ANZ Stadium, Olympic Park. Half-time: Rabbitohs 16-10. Crowd: 12,516.
