After becoming a late exclusion from the first-grade team last week, Latrell Mitchell is nothing but certain to make his return on Friday night against the Wests Tigers.

His return back to the NRL will coincide with him going up against one of the most promising players in the competition and Dally M Rookie of the Year contender Jahream Bula.

Recovering from a calf injury sustained prior to State of Origin,ย News Corpย revealed he is a certain starter to make his much-awaited return this weekend. His arrival will see him take the place of Blake Taaffe and hopefully get them back to their winning ways- after losing four of their past six matches.

Following the loss to the Brisbane Broncos, coach Jason Demetriou admitted how important and influential Mitchell is to the side that concedes an average of more than seven points when he is off the field.

โ€œWe're lacking a bit of accountability and intent and Latrell brings that,'' Demetriou said after the loss to the Broncos.

โ€œOur numbers defensively are a lot better when he does play compared to when he doesn't play.''

The South Sydney Rabbitohs will also be aiming to receive Tevita 'Junior' Tatola back for the game as he slowly recovers from injury. This would push English veteran Tom Burgess back onto the interchange and play that dynamic role in the limited minutes he is used to.

The Rabbitohs' sudden drop in form has seen them move outside the eight as they look to contend for a spot in the finals series. Considering how close the NRL completion currently is, they still have a run to make it into the top four.

Expected to win against the 17th-placed Wests Tigers, they have a relatively easily run to round out the season, competing against the 10th-placed Knights, 12th-placed Roosters and 15th-placed Dragons in the coming weeks.