South Sydney’s nightmare run with injuries has continued with Latrell Mitchell going down at training.
The talisman was set to return to the fold in Round 20 for the struggling Rabbitohs, who have lost six matches in a row to sink down the ladder.
However, the New South Wales representative will not be able to try to guide the Bunnies out of their slump after suffering a quadriceps injury.
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Souths rocked by yet another injury as Latrell Mitchell sidelined
Mitchell picked up the issue during a session on Thursday ahead of his club’s clash against Penrith, according to CODE Sports.
The fullback has now joined an already swelling casualty ward at Redfern.
Campbell Graham, Cody Walker and Davvy Moale were ruled out for their meeting with the Panthers. Meanwhile, the likes of Jye Gray, Brandon Smith and Cameron Murray are also on the sidelines.
Wayne Bennett admitted he no longer had his sights set on finals footy after Souths had found themselves cut six points adrift of the top-eight.
Instead, the coach stressed that all his focus was on helping his squad navigate the trickiest period of their season while they were well down on troops.
Bennett highlighted Mitchell as being key to this fightback, but he has since been ruled out for at least the next month in a bitter blow to the Bunnies.
"He has torn a quad muscle," Bennett confirmed.
"It was just in the warm-up. He wasn’t even running that fast. I was standing here watching it. He was probably going three-quarter pace.
"He had no soreness. He just said he felt it go."
Following their meeting with the four-time reigning premiers, Souths will face Cronulla and Brisbane back-to-back.
They then take a trip to the Gold Coast to take on the Titans before they host Parramatta and St George Illawarra.
A bye in Round 26 will punctuate a clash against their heated rivals, the Sydney Roosters, in the last match of the regular season.
The chances of Mitchell being brought back to take part in these last few fixtures appears slim at this point.