South Sydney coach Anthony Seibold knows his players must contain halfback Blake Green if they are to beat the Warriors in Auckland on Saturday night.
The 31-year-old Green has been one of the reasons why the Warriors sit third on the NRL ladder heading into the round 12 fixture, and Seibold knows if his troops can shut down the playmaker, they will have a great chance of winning.
On Friday, the Warriors confirmed Green would switch from five-eighth to halfback after Mason Lino was ruled out with a leg injury. Peta Hiku will take Green's spot in the no 6 jersey.
"I think Blake Green's a real key for them in attack," Seibold said on Friday.
"He's very effective with his kicking game, particularly his short kicking game - I think he has the most repeat sets in the NRL this season, so he adds a lot of composure to their attack.
"If you have a look at his previous couple of seasons he's been a very consistent player. He added a lot to Manly last year, some of the players in the Manly side like Tom Trbojevic and Daly Cherry-Evans valued having Blake in their team.
"So far this season I think he's been outstanding for the Warriors. He's been very consistent. I coached Green down in Melbourne, so I know what he brings to a team. "
In this season's opening round, the Warriors beat the Rabbitohs 32-20 in Perth for the first time, and they also snapped a run of six losses against South Sydney dating back to 2013.
But South Sydney have drastically improved since then as they sit in fourth - one spot behind the Warriors on the standings.
If they Bunnies beat the Warriors, they will leapfrog them with a fourth-straight win.
"The Warriors have been very consistency this year, and I think we have built some over the last two months," Seibold added.
"We got off to a shaky start in the first two rounds, and the Warriors were far too good for us in round one in Perth.
"Where the Warriors are sitting on the table is a reflection of how good they have been on both sides of the football.
"We are expecting a tough contest."
It is still not known if captain Roger Tuivasa-Sheck will play in the match, as he baby watch with fiancée Ashley Walker is expecting the couple's first child - which is due today.
Tuivasa-Sheck said on Thursday that he has the club's support if he needs to leave to be with his fiancée before kickoff, but he is confident he will play.
Newshub.
