With his team trailing by six points and less than 10 minutes remaining, Souths coach Wayne Bennett knew he had the right man in Adam Reynolds to orchestrate a comeback.
Reynolds played a key role in Dane Gagai's try which drew the Rabbitohs level in the 72nd minute when he chased a Damien Cook kick and then toed the ball ahead for Gagai to ground it just inside the dead ball line.
Four minutes later Junior Tatola was in under the posts and then Cameron Murray scored to put the icing on a 30-18 win which keeps the Rabbitohs in second spot on the ladder.
“I can't compliment Adam enough," Bennett said after pocketing a crucial two points.
"I just think he's a real cornerstone for us. He's quiet out there, he’s calm, he gets everybody around the park really well, he steps up and makes good decisions and then he gets to the kick.
“He's probably the best short kicker in the game.”
Gagai scores off freak Reynolds kick
With the Cowboys coming back from 12-10 down at the break to lead 18-12 late in the game, another big scalp loomed for the home side after they took down the Roosters in round 17.
The Rabbitohs kept their nerve, however, and the injection of Cameron Murray back into the game for the final surge proved crucial.
“I thought we were pretty good first half, pretty poor for 20 minutes in the second half and then we got a little bit of momentum late," Bennett said.
“The interchange guys came back out and they were good.
"Everyone else lifted the tempo of the game, we started to carry the ball better and control it better and all of a sudden it just opened up.
“We stayed at it and it just all changed within seven or eight minutes.”
Lowe scores against his former club
One of the heroes for the Rabbitohs was Ethan Lowe, who came back to haunt his old club with two tries in the first half.
Coming just a fortnight after a memorable State of Origin debut, Lowe's double continued a great run of form for the back-rower.
In the lead-up to the clash, Lowe said he didn’t have a point to prove to the club which let him go this year after he had played 108 matches and won a premiership in Townsville.
“I know that they'll want to prove to the club why they should be still here," Bennett said.
"I've got no doubt that what he said through the week wasn't really what he felt.”
The Rabbitohs next face the out of form Dragons and Bennett says he is happy with the way his team is travelling.
“We're heading in the right direction," he said.
"There's a lot to be done still, but we set up our season in the first 12 weeks of the competition.
"We've been a bit off since then but we've managed to win the last two games so that will give us a lot of confidence and we’re in a good place."
