Burgess stars as Bunnies bounce back

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BOB McCarthy stood at the end of the tunnel of legends, cheering South Sydney on to the SCG, making a point of shaking every player's hand.

Given everything McCarthy has given to the proud Redfern club, it was a poignant moment.

After three losses, South Sydney needed to beat St George Illawarra on Saturday night to still be regarded as a force to be reckoned with this season.

South Sydney's Sam Burgess tackled by Dragon's Adam Quinlan. Source: News Limited

Cue McCarthy, the local junior who until last night held the record for most first-grade games for the club with 211.

The intent was in captain John Sutton's eyes from the moment the pair exchanged a handshake, with the Rabbitohs five-eighth about to enter the record books.

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The emotion was all Souths needed, with the club grinding out a comprehensive victory on the back of a lopsided penalty count.

The big guns all delivered, with Sam Burgess and Greg Inglis both bagging second-half tries in a strong performance.

South Sydney's John Sutton celebrates Jason Clark's try. Source: News Limited

As if the penalty count hadn't hurt the Dragons enough in the opening 40 minutes, they had to contend with running into a big southerly in the second half.

So when Sam Burgess charged over from close range to make it 18-0 after 55 minutes, the Dragons were looking at a massive assignment.

As dominant as the pack was, this was still the length of the straight away from the outfit who have finished 80 minutes shy of a grand final for two straight years.

South Sydney's Greg Inglis tackled. Source: News Limited

Still, the Rabbits will happily take the two points, taking solace in the fact it is only round five.

Dragons winger Brett Morris went on report for a shoulder charge while Sam Burgess was also lifted into a dangerous position in the second half.

What the game lacked in finesse, it made up for with good, old-fashioned whack.

The Dragons were hammered in the penalty count in the opening half, allowing South Sydney enough possession to grind their way to a 14-0 lead.

The first points came courtesy of a penalty goal to Adam Reynolds, who calmly slotted one over from 32m out.

South Sydney's Greg Inglis attempts to break a tackle. Source: News Limited

The Rabbitohs were then denied a try to centre Joel Reddy before bench forward Luke Burgess powered over from in the 28th minute.

Only one minute earlier, Dragons captain Ben Creagh had a blow-up with referee Gavin Badger over the lopsided penalty count.

Creagh asked the referee: "How many penalties?"

Badger replied: "That's six against you!"

Creagh said: "Unbelievable".

South Sydney's John Sutton celebrates the win with his team mates. Source: News Limited

The Rabbitohs had all the field position, virtually camped on St George Illawarra's tryline for large parts.

For the record, the penalty count was 7-1 to Souths in the opening 40 minutes.

St George Illawarra's one glimmer of attacking hope was the new combination of five-eighth Gareth Widdop and fullback Josh Dugan, who went agonisingly close to combining for their first try.

After Widdop sent up a banana kick for Dugan, the video referee ruled he had lost the ball attempting to ground it.

Souths then pushed the lead to 14-0 courtesy of a Jason Clark try six minutes from halftime.

It was just the platform they needed to kick on in the second half as they look to launch their season.

The South Sydney Rabbitohs celebrate at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Source: News Limited

SOUTH SYDNEY 26 (S Burgess L Burgess J Clark G Inglis tries A Reynolds 5 goals) bt ST GEORGE ILLAWARRA 6 (J De Belin try G Widdop goal) at Sydney Cricket Ground. Referee: Gavin Badger, Alan Shortall. Crowd: 24,368.

Re-live the action with exclusive photos and polls in our coverage below:

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