South Sydney 24 Gold Coast 23

It may have taken four months, but the fight which thrust South Sydney into the finals last season is back. So said victorious Rabbitohs coach Jason Taylor, whose side overturned a deficit for the second time in succession.

It wasn't quite like coming back from 14-0 against the Warriors last start, however, the fact they won even after Scott Prince had looked to have claimed victory for the Titans with a 73rd-minute field goal was proof the Bunnies are bouncing, and scratching and fighting, again.

"There was some really disappointing parts, some soft tries that we've been talking about, but the resilience to just come back and keep fighting - it was something that we built a season on last year, and it's great to see it's back," Taylor said.

"There were a few times earlier in the season where we'd get behind and that'd be it, now two games in a row, we've got behind and come back … there's just no giving up. We kept fighting right to the death."

The 24-23 win - clinched via a 77th-minute penalty goal to hooker Issac Luke - was just the Rabbitohs' third win of the season, but importantly, their second in succession.

It might not seem much, but momentum like that is valuable to a team with pickings as scarce as the Rabbitohs have had to endure this year.

"In the end, I just think we've got a team that's coming together," Taylor said.

"We've got a lot of young guys in there who don't know how to give up, and it's something we don't want to teach them. I think that's rubbing off on all of us."

One of those young guys was Luke, who had all but given up on his goal kicking after missing his first, relatively easy, attempt. As soon as he missed it, he looked up at his coach in the stands, and knew he had been sacked from the job.

"I put my head down, then looked at JT and I knew I was going to get the sack," he said.

But Luke stepped up with three minutes remaining and potted the game-winning penalty goal - under pressure and with a "shiver down my spine".

It wasn't difficult but it wasn't easy, either. Not when you're a bloke who only started to kick goals this season. Luke said afterwards Taylor, a fairly handy goal-kicker himself, had "hammered" him at training about practising the easy ones. Funnily enough, he misses a lot of them.

"I've been getting hammered by JT at training, getting told to kick them in front," Luke said. "The easy ones are from out wide. The ones in front are the ones you need to worry about."

And he did worry about this one. "A big shiver went down my spine, but in that situation, you have to be able to step up to the plate."

And he did. His kick - which followed a 77th-minute penalty given away by Titans winger Jordan Atkins, who lay on Beau Champion a split-second too long - sailed over.

Luke was the hero, but there were others.

This game was something out of tabloid heaven; all about two hookers, a Prince, a Bull, and a bloke called Boof. There was Luke, who also scored two tries, Nathan Friend, who set up the Titans' first, the ever-brilliant Gold Coast halfback Prince, Anthony "Boof" Laffranchi, who notched a double on Origin selection eve, and Luke "Bull" Bailey, whose own Origin hopes may have been shattered by a shatter.

The result was hardly fair on the Titans. They lost four players to injury in an atrocious second half for them, including Bailey, who said he heard a crack as he made a charge for a try early in the second half. He may be sidelined for some time.

He may be joined by "six or seven others", Titans coach John Cartwright said. Interchange forward Aaron Cannings suffered a calf injury early in the second half, fullback Preston Campbell copped an accidental poke in the eye from Souths centre Jamie Simpson, and Daniel Conn damaged his shoulder.

SOUTH SYDNEY 24 (I Luke 2 D Fa'alogo J Sutton tries; I Luke 3 C Sandow goals) bt GOLD COAST 23 (A Laffranchi 2 J Atkins S Prince tries S Prince 3 goals S Prince field goal) at ANZ Stadium. Referee: Steve Lyons. Crowd: 9827.