Jack Wighton's frosty response after Latrell Mitchell apologises to Souths teammates

Jack Wighton issued a rather tetchy response on Tuesday when asked about Latrell Mitchell and his three-game suspension, after the star fullback offered an apology to his teammates. Mitchell won't play for the next month due to three-game ban and a South Sydney bye, after he was rubbed out for his ugly elbow to the face of Shaun Johnson last weekend.

It means Mitchell will once again be sidelined for an important stretch of games for the Rabbitohs, with coach Jason Demetriou fighting to save his job. Speaking to reporters at training on Tuesday, Saliva Havili revealed that Mitchell had apologised to teammates that he's been suspended again.

“Trell has addressed that. He’s owned his actions and he said what he’s said to us as a playing group as a leader of this team,” Havili said. “We’re all on board with what’s happened.

“Anything that Latrell says is massive, especially with a lot of young guns in the team. Just hearing that from him – especially him being a leader of the team – it helps us to know he’s got our back and that we’ve got his back.

“He was definitely apologetic for what’s happened. There are a lot of things that go on around Latrell. He’s a big name in our game and one of the best in our game, so anything he says, we listen to."

Jack Wighton's frosty response to questions about Latrell Mitchell

Wighton wasn't as forthcoming when asked about Mitchell, saying: “If you want to ask Latrell questions then you can talk to Trell. I’m here to talk about me and what I can do for the team. I am a mate (of his) and a mate protects a mate by not talking about him."

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Wighton said the entire playing group has got Demetriou's back, amid reports the coach could be sacked regardless of whether or not the Rabbitohs beat the Sharks this weekend. “We’ve all got his back,” Wighton said. “No one likes losing. We’re just in one of those patches, but we’re looking forward.

“I can’t comment on the talk. All I can do is my job. We’ve got his back, and everyone in that building has each other’s backs.”

Havili was also quick to shoot down suggestions Mitchell had lost his love for the game and might be considering walking away from the sport. “He’s (still in love with the game)," Havili said. "He had his best pre-season not that long ago. This is what happens when you’re losing – you get a lot of pressure on your back, and as the star player on our team, he’s going to be the one copping it.

“Any pressure is always going to come back on the coach with the start that we’ve had. But realistically, we’re the ones on the field putting a lot of pressure – not only on him – but on ourselves. We’re making the errors, we’re the ones not giving ourselves the chance to play the sort of footy that we’re capable of. That’s the accountability on us as players.”