Mitchell to play as Souths rest four stars

South Sydney will sit State of Origin stars Damien Cook, Cameron Murray, Dane Gagai and Jai Arrow against Newcastle to avoid them playing three games in eight days. Rabbitohs coach Wayne Bennett confirmed on Friday that both Latrell Mitchell and Jaydn Su'A would back up three days after Origin I, but the rest of his players would be rested. Souths have a rough run through the Origin period, with an away trip to Brisbane kicking off round 15. Cameron Murray has also battled injuries in the lead-up to the representative period, while Gagai and Arrow were left off Bennett's original team list. In better news for the Rabbitohs, it is believed Gagai has not suffered a serious hand injury after hurting it in Queensland's heavy loss in Townsville. Meanwhile Bennett said Mitchell had been quiet on his return to Rabbitohs training on Friday, but had no concerns over a letdown come Saturday. The veteran coach also claimed the 23-year-old was nowhere near reaching his ceiling, after his best night in represenative football for NSW on Wednesday.