Souths look the goods, briefly

 But reality eventually set in at the SCG, the return to the scene of so many of their memorable triumphs not enough inspiration as Wests Tigers put on a second half clinic to run out comfortable winners 30-10.

You could almost pinpoint the moment it started unravelling for the Bunnies, now none from six this season.

It came just after Ben Rogers had scored in the 27th minute to propel Souths to a 10-0 lead they fully deserved following a dominant opening.

There was a hint as Nathan Merrit sprayed the simple conversion wide, but it was clear the rot was well and truly about to set in when, from the kick-off, Jeremy Smith dropped the ball cold, the closest defender still 40 metres away.

It proved to be one hell of a momentum turner, Tigers halfback Mathew Head putting Chris Heighington over a short time later for a 10-6 deficit at the break.

“It did (swing the momentum) that was one that put us on the back foot and the Tigers scored from there,” said Souths coach Jason Taylor, though he refused to lay the blame at Smith`s feet.

“But we went into halftime at 10-6 and there was no reason why we couldn`t have done a lot better in the second half.

“It wasn`t our only issue, we continued to do those sort of things in the second half.”

And didn`t the Tigers capitalise, Head continuing his impressive return to top flight football following a horror few years with knee injuries as he guided the home side to victory.

The Tigers scored four unanswered tries after the break, their lift in intensity giving an indication that a halftime spray from Tim Sheens had welcomed them into the dressing room, a claim he later denied - sort of.

“The coach wasn`t happy but at the end of the day you`ve still got to be constructive,” he said. “A side on its game, we could have been 30 behind at halftime given the amount of ball we turned over.”

There was only one side turning over the ball in the second stanza, the blokes in the red and green with half a rabbit on their chests, a throwback to John Sattler`s jersey from the 1971 grand final in which he broke his jaw and had half his emblem ripped off his chest.

Head put Dean Collis over eight minutes after the restart and when Ben Te`o brushed off four defenders and reached out over the line, the Tigers looked home.

Brett Hodgson then gave Chris Lawrence a passage to the line before the Tigers skipper converted from the sideline for an unbeatable 14-point lead, Hodgson making it a perfect 20 from 20 kicks for the season when he converted Stuart Flanagan`s try in the dying stages.

Kids were then allowed onto the hallowed turf as part of the NRL`s Heritage weekend celebrations and the Tigers win denied fans what would have been the most enduring sight of the season.

“Seeing those kids out there on the field, I would have run out there myself and kicked a few goals if we won today, but it didn`t happen,” Taylor said.

Shame.