South Sydney coach Anthony Seibold believes his charges have nothing to prove when they meet defending premiers Melbourne in a top-of-the-table NRL clash on Friday.
The Rabbitohs have won 10 of their past 11 games to surge to second on the ladder - their highest point this late in the season since their breakthrough title in 2014.
But Seibold's men haven't met a top-eight team in almost two months, with their eight-game winning streak snapped by the Wests Tigers two weeks ago.
Then they barely beat bottom-placed Parramatta last week.
There's also their all-time record of four wins from 24 matches against the Storm, but Seibold insists his players have already demonstrated their premiership credentials this year.
"We've shown earlier in the season that we've put our best performances against the better teams, particularly since round three," Seibold said on Thursday.
"It's about trying to improve our game. We've spoken all year about the changes we've made to how we play this year. It's about trying to build on that."
The Rabbitohs have also lost five straight against the current ladder leaders, including a record 64-6 humiliation at AAMI Park late last year.
But Seibold again hit back at any suggestion their history against the Storm would have any bearing on their upcoming battle at ANZ Stadium.
He was quick to point out how his team was on track to match their total of 18 wins over the past two seasons before he took over from Michael Maguire this year.
"We've shown a lot of improvement this year. We've won 10 from our last 11 games. We've won 14 from our last 17 games," Seibold said.
"And the club in the last two years only won 18 games, so we've significantly improved.
"Whether that's enough to get the job done tomorrow, who knows. But whatever happens tomorrow is not going to have any impact on what ends up happening at the end of the year.
"It's a different team, a different game plan, a different staff, I don't think any prior results is going to have any impact on what we do tomorrow night."
Melbourne, who are gunning for nine straight wins, get Ryan Hoffman back from a shoulder injury with Joe Stimson moving back to the bench.
STATS THAT MATTER
- For the second time this season first will meet second, with Penrith beating St George Illawarra to become just the second team in six matches where the lower placed team has won.
- Melbourne are receiving a league-high 9.1 penalties per game.
- Craig Bellamy will move into equal fourth with Warren Ryan for most matches as a first-grade coach (415).
Share
