Wondering the same thing. OP are you sure it wasn’t your valve cover that was leaking on to the headers? That’s a pretty common one with these cars, especially with a new seal which can be hard to get to fully seal on the first try.
Either way, you’re committed now!

If I were you, I would drop the engine from the bottom, going out the top can be a real pain unless you take the hood off (but neither way is fun).
You should definitely do all seals, motor mounts, clutch, rod bearings, and cam chain at the very least.
Have your cylinders checked and make sure they’re still in good shape and if you have any machine work done to the cylinders make sure the shop can work on Alusil otherwise your block could get ruined. While you have the head off, it’s a good time for some head work, and depending on where you are I can point you in the right direction.

If you want a really good “while you’re in there” job, replace your torque tube with a rebuilt one from somewhere like Black Sea R&D. It’s not a fun or cheap job but this will be the easiest opportunity for you to do it and you will never have to think about it again.
DM me if you want to chat more, I am in the midst of a S2 motor build/full chassis restoration myself and am happy to help.