{"id":844101,"date":"2026-08-05T06:42:15","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T06:42:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/844101\/"},"modified":"2026-08-05T06:42:15","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T06:42:15","slug":"tallis-duncan-why-jack-wighton-believes-the-rising-star-is-the-rabbitohs-future-captain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/844101\/","title":{"rendered":"Tallis Duncan: Why Jack Wighton believes the rising star is the Rabbitohs\u2019 future captain"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Chris<\/p>\n

August 5, 2026 \u2014 12:38pm<\/p>\n

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Tallis Duncan is South Sydney\u2019s next captain, according to veteran Jack Wighton, who believes the rising star should be the Rabbitohs\u2019 top priority as some of their highest-profile players approach the last year of their contracts.<\/p>\n

The 24-year-old has been a standout for Souths this season and returns from a hamstring injury against Parramatta at Allianz Stadium on Saturday night as Wayne Bennett\u2019s team pushes to secure a top-eight berth.<\/p>\n

\"TallisTallis Duncan tries the Rabbitohs\u2019 Indigenous jersey on for size. Sitthixay Ditthavong<\/p>\n

The Rabbitohs have injured superstar Latrell Mitchell, Campbell Graham, David Fifita and a cast of others coming off contract at the end of the 2027 season.<\/p>\n

But with Duncan likely to be heavily pursued by rival teams if he does not re-sign before the November 1 transfer window, Wighton says Souths are right to put the rising back-rower at the top of their list.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s the club\u2019s future,\u201d the 33-year-old centre said on Wednesday. \u201cHe\u2019s probably the club\u2019s next captain if you ask me. He\u2019s a great role model, he\u2019s a great leader, and he does that with his actions and being upfront.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe club would be foolish if they didn\u2019t prioritise him \u2026 he\u2019d be first off the rank if it was me running the club. I think they\u2019re definitely going down the right lines there. As I said, I can see him as the next captain of this whole club.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SouthSouth Sydney veteran Jack Wighton.Sitthixay Ditthavong<\/p>\n

Souths will also be bolstered by the inclusion of their captain, Cameron Murray, for the Indigenous Round match against the Eels following a calf strain, as well as Fifita, who is back from suspension.<\/p>\n

Demonstrating his versatility, Duncan has for the sixth time in his last seven games been named in the centres, where he has prospered in the absence of Mitchell.<\/p>\n

A member of Souths\u2019 strong Indigenous contingent from the Wonnarua tribe in the Hunter Valley, Duncan said he was focused on helping the seventh-placed Rabbitohs make the finals for the first time since 2022 but would love to stay for good.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love this club and if everything was the same and it was up to me, I\u2019d be here forever,\u201d Duncan said. \u201cI love this club but I feel like at the moment it\u2019s time for football and all that stuff can come later.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wighton will don headgear on Saturday after suffering a split ear against Cronulla on Sunday<\/a>, adding that necessary accessory to the cast he is wearing on his right arm after surgery earlier this year.<\/p>\n

Front-rower Keaon Koloamatangi left training early on Wednesday with an apparent hip complaint, but teammates downplayed concern over his fitness.<\/p>\n

There is less confidence about Mitchell\u2019s recovery from a complex nerve damage that threatens to end the 29-year-old\u2019s season.<\/p>\n

He has trained separately from the rest of the squad in recent weeks, including running laps of their Heffron Park headquarters, but was not seen at their session on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are not sure as players,\u201d five-eighth Cody Walker said when asked when Mitchell might be back.<\/p>\n

\"SouthsSouths five-eighth Cody Walker speaks to reporters ahead of Indigenous Round.Sitthixay Ditthavong<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I\u2019m sure the medical staff have a really good plan in place to hopefully see him play at the back end of the year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mitchell hasn\u2019t played since round 11 in mid-May as a result of back and calf injuries and the emergence of a nerve issue which he has consulted a neurologist about.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a superstar of the game,\u201d Walker said of Mitchell. \u201c[But] I do believe that we have the players in place to be able to still compete at a high level and win games.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Mitchell will sit out again on Saturday, his Winmarra Foundation is displayed on the back of Souths\u2019 Indigenous Round jersey.<\/p>\n

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\"ChrisChris Barrett<\/a> is a senior sports reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald. He is a former South-East Asia correspondent for the Herald and The Age.Connect via X<\/a> or email<\/a>.From our partners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"August 5, 2026 \u2014 12:38pm Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":844102,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-844101","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/844101","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=844101"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/844101\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/844102"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=844101"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=844101"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=844101"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}