Toby Couchman

St George Illawarra set to hand teenage forward an NRL debut

The news comes after a former New South Welshman was ruled out of the match.

Published by
Jack Blyth

With a surname like 'Couchman', you could forgive fans for thinking this Red V debutant was the world's most boring superhero, instead Toby's simply here to help try and save the Dragons.

The St George Illawarra Dragons were the only team not to partake in Round 1, handed the bye for the opening round, and it honestly couldn't have come at a better time for the club.

Excluding the 26-0 half-time deficit in the Charity Shield, the Red V have copped injuries, illnesses, no-fault stand-downs, guilty pleas and a hotel scuffle all within the past few months, and the news doesn't improve with Jack de Belin ruled out of their first match.

Set to face the Gold Coast Titans at Kograh on Sunday, the Dragons have lost de Belin to a calf injury in the latest entry to their casualty ward, handing Jack Bird a start at lock, and opening the door for 19-year-old Toby Couchman to debut.

Whilst he played a minor role in the pre-season challenge, The Sydney Morning Herald reports that the Dragons will upgrade rookie forward Toby Couchman into their top 30 this week, and name him to debut on Sunday.

A local junior, Couchman has been plying his trade with the Thirroul Butchers growing up before moving into the Red V's system, as has his twin brother Ryan, and now looks set to be rewarded with his maiden NRL match.

Equally adept in the back-row and at prop, Couchman floated between the two positions last year as he also went back-and-forth between NSW Cup and Jersey Flegg.

An under-19s Origin berth with NSW also came his way, running for 114 metres and making 30 tackles in just 40 minutes on the pitch, building towards this very moment.

St George Illawarra are incredibly light in the middle as it stands, losing Joshua Coric for the season to a knee injury and de Belin for a few weeks to his calf, it leaves Couchman to join the likes of Aaron Woods, Francis Molo, Josh Kerr, Blake Lawrie, Michael Molo and 27-year-old rookie Nick Lui-Toso fighting for spots in the middle.

It'll be an imposing debut, facing a Gold Coast side that hasn't won their first two games of the season since 2010, and squaring off against Origin stars like Tino Fa'asuamaleaui, David Fifita and Moeaki Fotuaika.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - APRIL 03: Francis Molo of the Dragons looks dejected after defeat during the round four NRL match between the Parramatta Eels and the St George Illawarra Dragons at CommBank Stadium, on April 03, 2022, in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

The local junior is set to come off the bench for the Dragons with Bird at lock, and Jayden Sullivan winning the five-eighth role for their season opener.

It leaves Couchman to join Moses Mbye on the pine as the Dragons look to put an off-season of question marks and club statements behind them.

Published by
Jack Blyth