Burns credits Souths mates for NRL rise

Feb 20, 2017 - 1:26 AM South Sydney rookie Braidon Burns has credited his teammates for a stunning rise that has him on the cusp of a dream NRL debut in next week's season-opener.

Burns capped off a whirlwind pre-season with a strong two-try performance in the Rabbitohs' Charity Shield win against St George-Illawarra on Sunday.

It came after a strong showing at the Auckland Nines, which was preceded by a non-descript move from Penrith to Redfern over the summer.

The 20-year-old, who doesn't even own a Wikipedia page, said senior Rabbitohs Sam Burgess and Greg Inglis were quick to show him the ropes at his new home.

"I didn't know what to expect coming to the club," Burns said.

"The main boys, the older boys, they've taken it upon themselves to make me feel comfortable and a lot of the other younger boys feel comfortable. There's no hierarchy.

"They come up to you, make you feel like their brother. If they're doing something on the weekend, they'll invite you. They don't care how old we are, we're all on the same page."

Burns captured the hearts of the rugby league community last week after revealing both his parents were in separate jails for armed robbery and drugs charges.

He said a number of his new teammates praised him for overcoming a troubled upbringing.

"They've got a lot of respect for me now. Not that they didn't beforehand, but they've just come up to me and said, 'Good on you'," he said.

"It's real positive. I used to be embarrassed about that sort of stuff. But it's not my fault and it's my story, so I wanted to get it out there. Hopefully it can help someone."

Burns' impressive start to his time at the Rabbitohs, together with a long-term injury to Aaron Gray, has the winger in line for a stunning debut in round one against Wests Tigers.

Another former Panther in Robert Jennings, as well as Siosifa Talakai and Hymel Hunt, are also in contention for the vacant spot in the backline.

"I thought Braidon definitely performed really well for us. He's been training really well at Redfern. I think those younger guys are going to grow," coach Michael Maguire said.

"I'm fortunate I've got some good senior players guiding them in the right directions. They've set the platform about what's expected around the place.

"Off that leadership, these young guys are going to get better and better as we keep moving through the season."

Source: AAP