'I love playing with Rae': Southwell opens up on return to Red V

St George Illawarra forward Hannah Southwell has revealed how a desire to again play alongside captain and halfback Raecene McGregor had a strong influence on her return to the club.

Southwell, who captained the Knights from 2022 until last season, was a foundation player at the Dragons in 2018 along with McGregor and now female football manager Sam Bremner.

The former NSW Origin star and McGregor, the Kiwi Ferns playmaker, reunited in 2021 to help Sydney Roosters to premiership glory against St George Illawarra and have remained close friends.

“Rae's a phenomenal player and she was a big reason for me coming back here,” Southwell said of the 2022 IRL Golden Boot winner.

“I loved my time playing with Raecene. I remember she came into the Roosters a few years ago after [playing for] the Broncos, and she just changed our whole team back then.

“We won the premiership that year, so it was a no brainer for me to come back and play with Rae.”

After three seasons in Newcastle with sister Jesse, including another grand final triumph against the Titans in 2023, Southwell felt she needed a change of scenery and was granted a release due to her service to the club.

A call to Bremner led to Southwell returning to the Dragons as one of the senior players, along with McGregor, hooker Nita Maynard-Perrin and centre Bobbi Law, in an otherwise youthful team under new coach Nathan Cross.

“I think Sammy and Crossy have made huge changes within the club, and they were both big reasons why I came here, but also to play with young girls like Teagan Berry, Kasey Reh and then obviously Nita and Raecene,” Southwell said.

“Sammy has been great, she really looked after me when I was a young 18-or-19 year-old so it was a bit of a no-brainer to make the decision to come back.

"She has just been a great advocate for the women, she fights for us and that’s all we can really ask for.

“After my contract was sorted with the Knights and I was granted a release, I just reached out to Sammy and she took it from there.

“I'm enjoying my footy again, I don't have the pressures like I did. I'm just a player here, and I can just play footy and get back to how I started playing footy, so it's been everything I thought it would be and more.”

While most of the Dragons squad were still at school when Southwell last played for the Dragons in 2018, she is excited by the potential the club possesses with young stars such as Berry, Reh, Zali Hopkins, Indie Bostock, Ella Koster and Trinity Tauaneai.

“They've got really good young girls coming through the pathways and my job here is just to mentor them and make sure that they're good people off the field first and then good footy players on the field,” she said.

“I’ve really enjoyed playing with Zali, a young girl that has come through and really developed her footy game. They’re just a good bunch of girls.”

After scoring her first try for the Red V in last weekend’s last gasp 18-14 defeat of the Bulldogs, Southwell is looking forward to St George Illawarra’s first match of the season at WIN Stadium on Sunday against the Broncos.

The star-studded Brisbane outfit signed perhaps the biggest name in the NRLW when Jillaroos fullback Tamika Upton also secured a release from Newcastle to return to Queensland, but Southwell said the Dragons would be up to the challenge.  

“She's a quality player and a great leader for that team, she's going to steer them around so we're going to have to be ready for her, but I think we've got a young group who will do that and challenge them,” Southwell said.

“There is no fear with the young girls, we always respect our opposition and know they're going to be a quality side, but I think we got a bit more belief out of that Bulldogs game.”