Our best bet for Sunday's NRL Round 22 Sydney Derby between the Cronulla Sharks and South Sydney Rabbitohs is the Rabbitohs +11.5 / Over 50.5 / Alex Johnston to Score Same Game Multi at $5.40, with Johnston scoring in 13 of his 15 matches this season and both sides averaging big points totals in recent weeks.
Cronulla push for a top-two position while the Rabbitohs fight to stay inside the top eight when the two clubs clash on Sunday afternoon at Shark Park in Sydney.
Cronulla Sharks vs South Sydney Rabbitohs
The Sharks are timing their run into the post-season well, stringing together four wins in a row and sitting within striking distance of the top two now.
South Sydney are far patchier, having alternated between wins and losses the past five rounds. Most recently, they edged out the Storm in a 28-26 classic.
Leg 1 - Rabbitohs +11.5
Cronulla are favourites heading into this fixture, but there's every reason to believe the Rabbitohs will make this competitive.
They've covered the +11.5 spread in five of their last six matches, and beat the Sharks convincingly when they met in Round 10.
South Sydney's away record is the concern, given they've won on the road just three times this year. Still, only one of their away losses has been by more than 12 points, so they should keep in touch here.
Leg 2 - Over 50.5 Points Total
The Rabbitohs' last four matches have all had 50+ points scored. Cronulla have had their fair share of big scorelines too, with two of their last three cracking 60 points total.
These are two sides with sharp attacks and the willingness to throw the ball around.
Leg 3 - Alex Johnston to Score
This column backed Johnston to score last week and he came through for us, as the Rabbitohs' winger has done in 13 of his 15 matches this season.
Should this end up being a high scoring match as predicted, Johnston is an excellent chance at finding space down the edge and adding to his 21 tries in 2026.
Same Game Multi
Rabbitohs +11.5 / Over 50.5 / Johnston to Score = $5.40
Value Bet
Cronulla's Katoa has been in a rich vein of form this month, with seven tries so far in July.
On two of these occasions he's scored at least twice, bagging a hattrick against the Broncos and a brace against the Dolphins.
With the Sharks' attack firing, expect him to see plenty of ball and have ample opportunity to net another two.
