"It's beautiful": Walker's emotional tribute to Jai Arrow after moving victory

An emotional South Sydney Rabbitohs have put a massive dent in the Broncos’ title defence, walking away 48-6 winners on a night dedicated to one of rugby league’s most loved figures.

Jai Arrow was honoured before the match, ringing South Sydney’s legacy bell and walking onto the field to a guard of honour and standing ovation from the crowd.

Both sides wore jerseys dedicated to Arrow, with the Rabbitohs wearing a special ‘White Out’ kit, while the Broncos wore Arrow’s number above their crest.

Arrow, a former Rabbioh and Bronco, was visibly emotional as he walked out, having been forced into retirement after being diagnosed with MND during the off-season.

The Rabbitohs piled 48 points onto the Broncos, but despite the two competition points, Rabbitohs’ players said they were playing for something more.

“It's been a difficult few months, just seeing what Jai's had to go through firsthand,” Cody Walker told SEN League.

“The beautiful scenes here tonight that everyone came out in support of Jai, and he's got a tough road ahead.

“I suppose nights like this, we just want to keep encouraging Jai, that we're all supporting him, not just our team, but just the rugby league community, and everyone from all walks of life are putting their support out for Jai and it's beautiful, it's wonderful.

“I'm sure a lot of people will say that me and Jai have a unique relationship. We put shit on each other more times than not, but he's one of my best mates in the squad, and whenever I'm doing anything outside of rugby league or on our break, it's always me and him together, and that hasn't changed given the difficult circumstances that he's been under.

“He still has this ability to make us laugh and be really energised amongst the group. The boys still put shit on him, which is awesome, given the difficult circumstances, but he's got a wonderful family, wonderful support system, and the whole rugby league community, not just South Sydney, are all behind him, so it's wonderful.

“Anytime you captain such a foundation club, and a club with rich history, it's always a special moment, but to do it on a night like this, against the team that he debuted against, , the opposition captain is one of our ex-teammates… but it’s crazy how all the stars sort of aligned tonight.

“We're able to go out there and play the way that we know we're capable of, and get the two points for Jai, just to let him know that there's so much support out there for him, and he's not gonna do it alone.”

The loss sees the Broncos slump to their sixth straight loss, putting their finals hopes on life support, while Adam Reynolds and Ezra Mam both left the field early.