Slammin' Sam Burgess has powered South Sydney into premiership favouritism but insists staying humble is the key to the Rabbitohs' NRL title hopes.
Burgess revealed the resurgent Rabbitohs held a lengthy team talk in the fabled SCG dressing sheds after Friday night's 23-4 destruction of table-topping Manly to ensure the side's focus remains week to week - not on the looming finals.
The Rabbitohs cut Manly's competition lead to two points with four rounds of the minor premiership remaining, but Burgess said no-one was getting carried away after four straight wins.
"It's just another win really," he said.
"It doesn't count for a great deal really, except for the leaderboard. We've just got to keep our feet on the ground, work hard from week to week and we'll do that.
"The finals will come around in their own time.
The Rabbitohs have a short turnaround before hosting Brisbane on Thursday night.
"So we're going to have to rest up a few sore bodies and get prepared for that," Burgess said.
Favourite for the Dally M Medal after another barnstorming display iced by the match-sealing try over the Sea Eagles, Burgess symbolises Souths' single-mindedness with his own unselfish approach to the game's highest individual honour.
"I just crack on and whatever. It's not my goal to win that," said the British powerhouse.
"I just keep trying to play my best for the team and keep improving as a player."
Despite Burgess playing down Souths' premiership prospects, coach Michael Maguire and stand-in captain Greg Inglis admitted excitement was building as the club eyes its first title in 43 years.
"There's a really good feel amongst the players about how they're playing and enjoying what they're doing," Maguire said.
"And that's the understanding of the game that we've found and we've just got to stay at it."
After falling one game short of a grand final appearance for the past two years, Inglis was also quietly confident the Rabbitohs could go at least one step further in 2014.
"It's been spoken about each year that I've been here, that it's going to be our year," Inglis said.
"But the belief that I have with these guys is pretty much what it has been in the past.
"It's just working really well together and the feeling around Redfern and around the club, we've just got to knuckle down."
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