South Sydney Rabbitohs vs Melbourne Storm Predictions: Leaders bouncing back with a bang?

It might be 15th versus first when the South Sydney Rabbitohs host the Melbourne Storm on Thursday at Accor Stadium, but the visitors are just five days removed from one surprise loss and will be wary of another (10:50 BST, 19:50 local, live on Watch NRL).

Craig Bellamy’s leaders went down 18-16 at home to the St George-Illawarra Dragons last weekend, and they’ll need to be on it as the Bunnies aim to bounce back from successive defeats. My South Sydney Rabbitohs vs Melbourne Storm predictions don’t foresee another Storm setback…

South Syndey Rabbitohs vs Melbourne Storm Odds

There’s no shock in seeing the Storm picked as favourites (they’re 2/11 for the win in 80 minutes), and anyone who fancies the Rabbitohs to come up out top will find value in their 4/1. The draw in regulation time is priced at 25/1.

Meanwhile, Betfred have a price boost in this one, with the Storm to score the first three tries coming in at 5/2 rather than the initial 9/4.

Team News

The big news for Bunnies interim head coach Ben Hornby is that Cody Walker returns in the halves after a calf injury. They are still without a host of players other than Walker, with Tyrone Munro and Latrell Mitchell hoping to be available over the next few weeks.

None of Jai Arrow, Alex Johnston, Campbell Graham, Tevita Tatola, Isaiah Tass and Lachlan Ilias are scheduled to return before next season.

Eliesa Katoa misses out for the Storm due to a knee injury, but there is good news for Melbourne as Tui Kamikamica steps back into the side after recovering from a groin issue.

Young Tonumpaipea (calf) is slated for a return next week, with Xavier Coates (hamstring) and Christian Welch (back) not far behind him as the finals come into view.

It remains unclear how long Bronson Garlick will miss with his own back problem, while Jonah Pezet’s ACL damage has him out for the rest of the year.

Rugby League Odds

Storm to win by 16-20 points @ 5/1

I can’t see Craig Bellamy’s troops turning in another display like last week’s. The storied coach has been disappointed with the way his side has started both halves over the last couple of games, with the 32-14 win at Parramatta in Round 21 coming only after the Eels had been given a bit of a leg-up with two early tries.

This Storm side is surely too good to allow that to happen for a third consecutive match, and I can see them getting it right this week against a Rabbitohs side that was threatening to make a late rally for the finals until their last two results.

The Bunnies need a win here to give themselves even a slither of a hope, but they’re up against the best team in the comp. And if the Storm get a better start, they should be far too good. The 5/1 odds for a 16-20-point away win imply a 16.7% chance but I make it more probable than that.

Storm total points over 36.5 @ 7/5

If they get a bit of a lead up, I can see the Storm adding points at will late on, and the 36.5-point mark may well be breached with some insurance scores as the Bunnies tire.

Souths are averaging 27.9 points against in 2024, and it doesn’t take much to foresee a fair few tries being shipped on Thursday.

My thinking is that the one threat to my 5/1 winning margin bet is Melbourne coming in hot late on, so the 7/5 available on them reaching 37 points could either be a chance to add to the pot or provide cover.

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