Greg Inglis blames the extra burden of captaincy for his slow start to the season as his opposite No.1 Josh Dugan revealed he needed a mental break from rugby league following last Wednesday's Origin.

Inglis and Dugan came head-to-head on Wednesday – just a week after Queensland's record series win against NSW – to help launch the NRL's Men of League Heritage round, which features the Dragons playing South Sydney at the SCG on Saturday.

It will be Dugan's first appearance since his Origin heartache. Dugan revealed he was physically fit to play for St George Illawarra in their last start loss to Cronulla but was mentally drained following his first full Origin series.

"Mentally I was pretty run down," Dugan said. "You work so hard for that Origin period. It's a rollercoaster. You have to play on Wednesday and back up a couple of days later. So much hype around those games.

"It's about being able to get up and get away from it when you are. That was the biggest thing I took out of it this year. I was a bit mentally run down after game three. Had the week off. I needed that rest. I was pretty sore but I probably could've played.

"I was carrying a few niggles over the last two months. It's always good to rest the body and the mind. I think I needed a few days break."

Inglis needed a different kind of mental approach to the game after he battled indifferent form to start the season. Having assumed the full-time captaincy for the first time, Inglis said he was too caught up in aspects away from the field.

"With the captaincy I was looking at different ways to approach the game," Inglis said. "That's not me. I like to sit back, relax and really love what I do. Over the few months I did that and not think too much about what's going on in the outside world and bunker down.

"I wouldn't say [I was] more intense, it was just worried about other things going on.

"When it first got handed to me I was stoked and happy with it. I probably thought about it in different ways and worried about too many things around the club. I found the last few months, if I put that aside and just concentrate on myself and what I can bring to the team."

The Dragons-Rabbitohs clash will double as a 50-year celebration of the 1965 grand final won by St George 12-8. St George's Billy Smith and South Sydney pair Bob McCarthy and Ron Coote were on hand to remember the Dragons' 10th consecutive premiership, when the crowd of 78,056 people hung from the rafters at the SCG.

The current St George Illawarra side are on a streak of their own – losing their past five games. Another loss could see them drop out of the top eight.

"We don't need to panic just yet," Dugan said. "We lost a couple of games at the start of the year but turned it around. Being able to get our players back, we have a few back this week and a few more [in the next few weeks].

"If we lose this week we can start getting a little bit worried. Everyone is excited about playing the game."

Inglis – who had five days off following last Wednesday's Origin – said his side were well placed to make a tilt at their premiership defence.

"There's been a lot of swapping and changing compared to last year," Inglis said. "Just have to find that right consistency. We are training really well. Have to transfer it to game day."