South Sydney captain Cameron Murray believes new recruit David Fifita is primed for a major resurgence in red and green after being blown away by the forward’s attitude and application throughout his first pre-season at the club.
Fifita arrived at the Rabbitohs following a frustrating stint on the Gold Coast, where his undeniable talent often failed to translate into results over the last two seasons, but Murray says early signs at Redfern suggest a very different story is unfolding.
“He’s really good, he’s really impressed me,” Murray said, speaking at a media event for Asics on the weekend.
“He’s coming with a great attitude. He was there to get his foot right when he started, and he didn’t leave any stone unturned with his rehab and was working hard in the gym,” Murray added supportively.
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After beginning the summer focused on overcoming a foot injury, Fifita has since hit the training paddock at full intensity, quickly catching the eye of teammates with his power and work rate.
The endorsement of captain Murray is a positive one for the Rabbitohs’ fortunes, with all reports suggesting the big second-rower is motivated and fighting fit — a scary prospect for the rest of the NRL.
The Rabbitohs skipper believes Fifita’s mindset has been the biggest indicator that a long-awaited return to his best football could be imminent.
“He seems happy and he seems like he’s getting fitter, and it seems like he wants to get back to his best footy, and there’s no doubt that he’ll get the opportunity to do that here at the club,” Murray stated.
Murray admitted Fifita has long been one of the most difficult forwards to deal with on the field at his best and welcomed the chance to finally line up alongside him.
“After all these years of trying to tackle him, it’ll be nice to have him next to me,” Murray said.
Just two seasons ago, Fifita was one of the most devastating forwards in the game, barging over for tries and ranking among the league leaders in try assists for forwards.
After bursting onto the Gold Coast scene in 2021 and scoring 17 tries that season, the last two years saw Fifita fall out of favour dramatically on the glamour strip, with all his games in 2025 coming off the interchange bench, and he also lost his Queensland representative jersey during that period.
If Fifita can return to even close to the form he showed in his first few years at the Titans — and from Murray’s indication, it’s a real possibility — it could propel the Rabbitohs’ hopes of another premiership to a whole new level in 2026.