- Mitchell stuns fans with first-half brain explosions
- Souths star criticized for elbow collision with opponent
- Demetriou has called Mitchell’s behavior “stupid”
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NRL superstar Latrell Mitchell has come under fire from football fans and pundits after he elbowed Warriors halfback Shaun Johnson in the head on Saturday afternoon in the Rabbitohs’ home defeat against the Warriors.
The New Zealand team cruised to a 34-4 victory at Accor Stadium, but the big talking point will be Mitchell’s availability over the next few weeks as Souths slipped to a 1-4 start.
Already without Campbell Graham, Alex Johnston and Jai Arrow through injury, and after losing halfback Lachlan Ilias to a broken leg in Saturday’s NSW Cup action, Mitchell is almost certain to spend time on the sidelines.
Mitchell appeared to lead with his elbow, making contact with the head of Warriors halfback Shaun Johnson as the Rabbitohs No.1 knocked the ball off his own line in the 18th minute.
Latrell Mitchell has come under fire from fans and football experts after he elbowed Warriors running back Shaun Johnson in the head on Saturday afternoon.
Penrith great Greg Alexander said in commentary for Fox Sports that the act was “brazen”, later adding: “I don’t know what goes through Latrell’s mind sometimes in a game.”
Football fans were baffled as to how Mitchell escaped time in the moving bin.
‘So how come that 10 isn’t in the trash? Oh, that’s right, it’s because it’s Latrell,” wrote one fan on X.
‘Safe farewell!!’, responded another.
“There are at least 10 in the trash,” said a third.
Mitchell was also booked for a dangerous shot in the 31st minute on Tohu Harris after lifting the Warriors captain over the crossbar.
‘They’re both stupid things. You have to be better, it’s that simple,” Demetriou said.
But the South Sydney coach refused to criticize the full-back, whose record is beginning to work against him.
“I’ll have those conversations (with him) during the week,” Demetriou said.
Souths coach Jason Demetriou called Mitchell’s behavior ‘stupid’
The fullback was reported twice in the Rabbitohs’ loss against the Warriors.
‘It’s not something I should talk about now.
“As a group, we will be honest like we are every week and look at the things we need to improve on.”
Mitchell faces a suspension ahead of a trial for the Bunnies, who face Cronulla, Melbourne and Penrith over the next month.
Their poor discipline proved to be Souths’ undoing after a positive start which saw Izaac Thompson slip through the Warriors defense and touch down after five minutes.
It was the best South Sydney would play all afternoon with Rocco Berry breaking through a weak Rabbitohs defense to put Andrew Webster’s side ahead after Shaun Johnson converted.
In the 13 minutes between Mitchell’s two indiscretions, Souths made four errors and were offside on three separate occasions.
After being reported for the second time, the Warriors finally made the Bunnies pay, Jackson Ford and Johnson crossing in quick succession to give the New Zealand team an 18-4 lead at halftime.
Johnson launched early in the second half before fullback Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad sent Roger Tuivasa-Sheck into the corner in his 200th NRL game.
Te Maire Martin, the Warriors’ fifth-eighth, overcame a pathetic defense in the 70th minute, causing a large portion of the 13,184 spectators to head for the exit.
The victory is the Warriors’ first over the Rabbitohs since 2018 and is likely to increase the pressure on coach Demetriou.
“We need to get back to it,” he said.
“Our main goal is to review this and move on to next week. The season can change quickly with a few wins in a row, but we have to be honest.”