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The Parramatta Eels have long been Canterbury's main rivals, while South Sydney and the Roosters have shared a common disdain that dates back more than a century.
But over the past 10 years, as the Bulldogs and Rabbitohs have evolved into Sydney's super clubs, a new modern-day rivalry has been formed that has the potential to supersede the animosity shared with their respective arch enemies.
It's no disrespect to the Roosters, who arguably remain the on-field benchmark, but off the field South Sydney are far more concerned with the happenings in Belmore than Bondi, while Bulldogs boss Raelene Castle says the club now view the Bunnies like they did the Eels in the 80's.
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There is plenty of respect between the two clubs, who often work together at management level to grow their respective clubs, but there remains a strong level of direct competitiveness between the two clubs who call ANZ Stadium home.
South Sydney claimed bragging rights and the status as Sydney's rugby league powerhouse with a drought-breaking 30-6 victory against the Bulldogs in last year's grand final.
But perhaps the moment which this blossoming rivalry climaxed came in chaotic and controversial scenes at the Olympic venue just over four months ago.
Tempers frayed, emotions boiled over and rugby league was left to nurse another black eye as the rapidly-growing feud between the Bulldogs and Rabbitohs entered another chapter.
After the match there were a minority of fans who tarnished the reputation the family club had worked so hard to clean up over the past decade, throwing projectiles and inciting violence on their way out of the ground after a controversial refereeing decision saw the Bulldogs surrender victory in the dying seconds.
While South Sydney left with the two points, Rabbitohs officials and players were angry with James Graham taking out and injuring their star playmaker Adam Reynolds with the charge-down that provided the Rabbitohs with the penalty goal to snatch victory.
South Sydney fans were critical of the behaviour of the Bulldogs fans, which didn't sit well with the Canterbury hierarchy who bit their tongues despite wanting to remind them of two previous incidents involving South Sydney fans and projectiles aimed at referees.
There's also the incident that happened behind closed doors after last year's grand final loss, when Castle and Bulldogs chairman Ray Dib attempted to escort NRL chief executive Dave Smith, ARLC boss John Grant and head of football Todd Greenberg into the South Sydney sheds to congratulate the Bunnies on their victory.
They were denied entry by the South Sydney doorman, who was under strict instruction not to let anyone in because co-owner Russell Crowe was inside.
Despite waiting an extended period for a South Sydney official to allow them in, Dib and Castle never made it inside, with former chief executive Shane Richardson coming to the door to greet the Bulldogs duo as Greenberg, Smith and Grant ventured inside the change rooms.
There's also tension between the Bulldogs, who ironically raised $100,000 to help South Sydney regain entry back into the competition in the early 2000s, and the Rabbitohs over the power struggle between the NRL and its clubs.
The Bulldogs have aligned themselves with the Sydney Roosters and Penrith Panthers and have made no secret of their dismay over the way the NRL operates - feelings they thought were reciprocated by South Sydney.
However, the Rabbitohs have aligned themselves with the NRL, while their chairman Nick Pappas also infuriated Bulldogs officials after Canterbury's loss to Cronulla in round 20 when he tweeted "Much-hyped Belmore 'atmosphere' couldn't deliver a great spectacle. Or a home side win."
While there are plenty of incidents that have caused tension in recent years, there's also a mutual respect between the two clubs that is typified in the relationship between Castle and new South Sydney boss John Lee.
"Taking over here at the club here from 'Richo', one of the first phone calls I received was from Raelene Castle," Lee said.
"She welcomed me to the game and suggested we meet up and have a good Chinese feed out at the Leagues Club as soon as I got my feet under the desk. I think it's very true that on field there's amazing rivalry between not only the players but coaches. They're both strong clubs where success is expected. Off field what has been very consistent is the level of professionalism of the boards of both clubs have in ensuring clubs are well run and operate efficiently.
"There's an old political term, 'so much more that unites us than divides us'. If I was to use a geopolitical analogy, from afar people think the Rabbitohs and Bulldogs are like America and Russia. We think Bulldogs are our ally and more like Britain than Russia."
South Sydney's move from the Sydney Football Stadium to ANZ Stadium in 2006 has not only seen their annual net profit from ticket sales increase from $36,000 in 2005 to in excess of $2 million a decade later - but also a shift in perspective at management level.
The Rabbitohs now have a greater focus on western Sydney that has resulted in a significant growth in membership, partly in areas that have long been regarded Canterbury territory, with almost 60 per cent of South Sydney members living in the inner west and greater western Sydney.
But the Bulldogs and Rabbitohs share more than just the same stadium, a love for English forwards and a training base at their respective spiritual homes.
"As far as the back office goes we have a normal respect for each other and recognise that working together we can grow a bigger rivalry. We talk and share about everything except football, we never ever talk about our football teams," Castle said.
"I'm surprised clubs don't work together more off field because in reality we don't really compete. The benefits of our relationship is evident in us working together to ensure ANZ Stadium gets the next level of investment.
"It's a massive rivalry on the field, there's a really big rivalry between our fan base and that's what creates dynasties and great football results, passion and sellout crowds. We work together to develop that."
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...valry-now-biggest-in-nrl-20150819-gj3afl.html
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
explains NRL hatred of us and favouritism of South's
But over the past 10 years, as the Bulldogs and Rabbitohs have evolved into Sydney's super clubs, a new modern-day rivalry has been formed that has the potential to supersede the animosity shared with their respective arch enemies.
It's no disrespect to the Roosters, who arguably remain the on-field benchmark, but off the field South Sydney are far more concerned with the happenings in Belmore than Bondi, while Bulldogs boss Raelene Castle says the club now view the Bunnies like they did the Eels in the 80's.
Advertisement
There is plenty of respect between the two clubs, who often work together at management level to grow their respective clubs, but there remains a strong level of direct competitiveness between the two clubs who call ANZ Stadium home.
South Sydney claimed bragging rights and the status as Sydney's rugby league powerhouse with a drought-breaking 30-6 victory against the Bulldogs in last year's grand final.
But perhaps the moment which this blossoming rivalry climaxed came in chaotic and controversial scenes at the Olympic venue just over four months ago.
Tempers frayed, emotions boiled over and rugby league was left to nurse another black eye as the rapidly-growing feud between the Bulldogs and Rabbitohs entered another chapter.
After the match there were a minority of fans who tarnished the reputation the family club had worked so hard to clean up over the past decade, throwing projectiles and inciting violence on their way out of the ground after a controversial refereeing decision saw the Bulldogs surrender victory in the dying seconds.
While South Sydney left with the two points, Rabbitohs officials and players were angry with James Graham taking out and injuring their star playmaker Adam Reynolds with the charge-down that provided the Rabbitohs with the penalty goal to snatch victory.
South Sydney fans were critical of the behaviour of the Bulldogs fans, which didn't sit well with the Canterbury hierarchy who bit their tongues despite wanting to remind them of two previous incidents involving South Sydney fans and projectiles aimed at referees.
There's also the incident that happened behind closed doors after last year's grand final loss, when Castle and Bulldogs chairman Ray Dib attempted to escort NRL chief executive Dave Smith, ARLC boss John Grant and head of football Todd Greenberg into the South Sydney sheds to congratulate the Bunnies on their victory.
They were denied entry by the South Sydney doorman, who was under strict instruction not to let anyone in because co-owner Russell Crowe was inside.
Despite waiting an extended period for a South Sydney official to allow them in, Dib and Castle never made it inside, with former chief executive Shane Richardson coming to the door to greet the Bulldogs duo as Greenberg, Smith and Grant ventured inside the change rooms.
There's also tension between the Bulldogs, who ironically raised $100,000 to help South Sydney regain entry back into the competition in the early 2000s, and the Rabbitohs over the power struggle between the NRL and its clubs.
The Bulldogs have aligned themselves with the Sydney Roosters and Penrith Panthers and have made no secret of their dismay over the way the NRL operates - feelings they thought were reciprocated by South Sydney.
However, the Rabbitohs have aligned themselves with the NRL, while their chairman Nick Pappas also infuriated Bulldogs officials after Canterbury's loss to Cronulla in round 20 when he tweeted "Much-hyped Belmore 'atmosphere' couldn't deliver a great spectacle. Or a home side win."
While there are plenty of incidents that have caused tension in recent years, there's also a mutual respect between the two clubs that is typified in the relationship between Castle and new South Sydney boss John Lee.
"Taking over here at the club here from 'Richo', one of the first phone calls I received was from Raelene Castle," Lee said.
"She welcomed me to the game and suggested we meet up and have a good Chinese feed out at the Leagues Club as soon as I got my feet under the desk. I think it's very true that on field there's amazing rivalry between not only the players but coaches. They're both strong clubs where success is expected. Off field what has been very consistent is the level of professionalism of the boards of both clubs have in ensuring clubs are well run and operate efficiently.
"There's an old political term, 'so much more that unites us than divides us'. If I was to use a geopolitical analogy, from afar people think the Rabbitohs and Bulldogs are like America and Russia. We think Bulldogs are our ally and more like Britain than Russia."
South Sydney's move from the Sydney Football Stadium to ANZ Stadium in 2006 has not only seen their annual net profit from ticket sales increase from $36,000 in 2005 to in excess of $2 million a decade later - but also a shift in perspective at management level.
The Rabbitohs now have a greater focus on western Sydney that has resulted in a significant growth in membership, partly in areas that have long been regarded Canterbury territory, with almost 60 per cent of South Sydney members living in the inner west and greater western Sydney.
But the Bulldogs and Rabbitohs share more than just the same stadium, a love for English forwards and a training base at their respective spiritual homes.
"As far as the back office goes we have a normal respect for each other and recognise that working together we can grow a bigger rivalry. We talk and share about everything except football, we never ever talk about our football teams," Castle said.
"I'm surprised clubs don't work together more off field because in reality we don't really compete. The benefits of our relationship is evident in us working together to ensure ANZ Stadium gets the next level of investment.
"It's a massive rivalry on the field, there's a really big rivalry between our fan base and that's what creates dynasties and great football results, passion and sellout crowds. We work together to develop that."
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...valry-now-biggest-in-nrl-20150819-gj3afl.html
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
explains NRL hatred of us and favouritism of South's
