NRL Rd 4 - Panthers v Rabbitohs
PENRITH, AUSTRALIA - APRIL 01: Lachlan Ilias of the Rabbitohs passes during the round four NRL match between the Penrith Panthers and the South Sydney Rabbitohs at BlueBet Stadium, on April 01, 2022, in Penrith, Australia. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)

South Sydney Rabbitohs coach Jason Demetriou has shared an insight into the development of Lachlan Ilias ahead of the most important game of the 22-year-old’s career in the preliminary final showdown with Penrith.

Brought into a fierce spotlight as a replacement for Adam Reynolds at the start of the year, the Rabbitohs coach claims that it’s been the senior players in the Rabbitohs squad who should take the lion’s share of the credit for the young half’s incredible debut.

Though he’s had moments of doubt, particularly in the early stages, Ilias has all but secured the starting No.7 role at the club behind some increasingly noteworthy performances, and the coach says it’s the impact of the senior players on their young playmaker that’s made the difference.

“Lachie came in as a rookie pretty much, he’d only played one game at the end of last season. To do what he’s done this season has been pretty special,” Demetriou told SEN 1170 Afternoons.

“I’ve got to give credit to our senior boys, our spine in particular, for how they helped Lachie and have given him the confidence to go out there and do what he’s done.

“We aren’t congratulating ourselves too much at the moment, there’s a journey we’re still on and we haven’t reached that final destination yet.”

Ilias’ success is a small-scale representation of what Demetriou has been able to achieve with his Rabbitohs team this year, with few giving them a chance of replicating last year’s efforts following the departure of Wayne Bennett and Adam Reynolds in one fell swoop.

“That’s probably been the biggest lesson for all of us; the expectations or things that are written about in pre-season by experts, they have no bearing on whether we apply ourselves and what goes on every week for the 24 rounds,” Demetriou continued.

“The players have been outstanding. They’ve applied themselves and built our season really well. We’re playing good footy at the right time of the year and they’re writing their own story which is exciting to see.”