Souths debutant nearly ditched NRL dream for Newcastle RL club return

French, at the ripe age of 25, will debut for the Rabbitohs against the Dragons at Kogarah on Saturday.

A Central Coast product who played his junior footy for the The Entrance, French has come through the grades at South Sydney but had been yet to crack fist grade.

He was part of South Sydney's 2019 Jersey Flegg Cup premiership triumph and come off the bench in the club's NSW Cup grand final victory last year.

But after also featuring in the Rabbitohs' State Championship win over Brisbane Tigers, on the NRL grand final day, French weighed up his future in Sydney.

"He nearly gave up," Forbes told the Newcastle Herald.

"He'd been having a crack for quite a few years, just running around, on the cusp, in NSW Cup.

"But it was the end of last year, I spoke to him about him coming back, and he said: 'Mate, I might have one more crack and if I don't get a run in first grade, I'll be back at the end of 2024'.

"His perseverance has finally paid off."

Forbes was over the moon for French, whose brother Josh plays for The Entrance in the Central Coast competition.

The back-rower/lock will make his debut from the bench, drafted in after the Rabbitohs were hit by a host of injuries in recent weeks.

"At the end of the day, there's only a select a number of people who can say they've played NRL," Forbes said.

"Well done to him."

Closer to home, the Tigers have unable to train this week with their ground closed from recent rain.

After a 20-12 loss to Wests, "in horrible conditions" at Cessnock last week, the 2-1 Tigers were due to host Kurri Kurri on Sunday, but the game has been moved to Maitland Sportsground.

Wests' clash with Northern has also been moved to Lakeside Sporting Complex on Saturday, while Central's Sunday fixture against Cessnock has switched to Cessnock Sportsground and will be played at 2pm.