It’s proof the rugby league gods have a sense of theatre. Of the 16 rival clubs Latrell Mitchell could be playing his first game in nine months against, it has to be the Roosters.

The biggest moments around Mitchell - the biggest headline and biggest personality in the game - so often are.

His move across Anzac Parade and the months of spiteful sniping that followed.

The brutal head-high shot on former teammate Joey Manu that ended both their seasons, with the fall-out rippling far and wide - not least into a three-year-long feud between Nick Politis and Phil Gould, two of rugby league’s most powerful figures.

The booing saga of late-2022 and the last laugh Mitchell enjoyed in South Sydney’s infamous “Sin-bin Sunday” semi-final, when no less than seven players were sat down but the Rabbitohs star held his cool.

And come Friday night, the game’s oldest, most storied rivalry hosts one of the bigger games of Mitchell’s career.

Latrell Mitchell is ready to return for South Sydney.Credit: Getty Images

Mitchell is finally back, looking fitter than ever and most significantly, with Wayne Bennett in his corner and the South Sydney coach’s box.

“I........

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