DAYS like this in rugby league come around roughly every century.

That was the last time four brothers played first grade together in Australia’s top competition when Ray, Roy, Rex and Bernard Norman ran out together for Annandale way back in 1910.



On Tuesday, 103 years on, the four Burgess brothers from Dewsbury in the north of England etched their names in the record books when they are named to play together for South Sydney for the first time.



Marking one of the most wonderful days in the Rabbitohs’ proud history, coach Michael Maguire is expected to name Sam, Luke, George and Thomas in his squad to crash tackle Benji Marshall’s 200th game for the Wests Tigers this Friday night at Allianz Stadium.



ALL THE SQUADS FOR ROUND 25



Together, the Burgess boys have about 460kgs of hulking muscle between them.



But according to South Sydney legend Mario Fenech, there is more to the Burgess brothers than their noticeable good looks.



“You need mongrel in this game and these boys have got it,” Fenech roared last night, in anticipation of today’s announcement.



“I’ve been around the block in this game mate and even if you are a back or a forward you have got to have that element of mongrel where you are really prepared to do what you have got to do.



"When they go on the field together they are so proud to be out there together as brothers and they would die for each other, I’m telling you they would.”



And in Mario’s red and green eyes, that is what makes them so special.



When Hollywood superstar and Souths owner Russell Crowe first announced his intentions to brings the boys over from England to keep superstar Sam company at Redfern, most thought it was a bit of a public relations exercise to keep Sam happy.



But then older brother Luke proved his worth at the club, and then the twins came along and cleared a path to the top grade like wrecking balls.



Last year George exploded onto the scene with a handful of games _ and after coming to Australia last summer, twin Thomas has made an instant impression as he stormed his way into the top grade for the second half of the season.



Luke missed a large part of the season after injuring his shoulder during pre-season training but when Sam was suspended two weeks back for his squirrel grip on Melbourne’s Will Chambers, the Burgess boys found a positive out of a negative when Luke got a promotion from the NSW Cup.



Their form in Sam’s absence means there is no way on earth Maguire has any reason to drop any of the brothers to make way for Sam today - which, fingers crossed, means this will be a day Souths fans look back on in about a hundred years from now.



As Fenech said, when they hit the field together on Friday night, it will be a celebration for Souths fans and a proud moment for their mother Julie, who raised the boys after their father Mark lost his battle to motor neurone disease in 2007 at the age of 45.



“She is a wonderful woman and they are champion men,” Fenech said.



“They play tough and they are big strong athletes.



“You can’t beat blood mate, you cannot beat blood.



"I wish I could have played with all my brothers, I would have been tickled pink.



“And good on them.



“They have made a wonderful contribution to our football club.”



With the Rabbitohs in second spot on the NRL ladder, Fenech reckons the raw power of the Burgess boys could be the X-factor in the Bunnies’ chase for their first premiership since 1971.



Not that they’ll be taking the Tigers for granted on Friday night – it’s just that with these four brothers playing together for the first time, it’s hard to see how Benji’s 200th game will end in anything but a Burgess stampede.



Rabbitohs: Greg Inglis, Nathan Merritt, Bryson Goodwin, Dylan Walker, Dylan Farrell, John Sutton, Adam Reynolds, Luke Burgess, Issac Luke, Roy Asotasi, Chris McQueen, Ben Te’o, Sam Burgess Interchange: Luke Keary, Jeff Lima, George Burgess, Thomas Burgess, Jason Clark