Ryan Couchman (born 16 September 2003) is an Australian professional

Rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

footballer who plays as a forward for the

St. George Illawarra Dragons The St. George Illawarra Dragons are an Australian professional rugby league football club, representing both the Illawarra and St George regions of New South Wales. The club has competed in the National Rugby League (NRL) since 1999 after a j ...

in the

NRL The National Rugby League (also known as the NRL Telstra Premiership for sponsorship reasons) is a professional rugby league competition in Oceania which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria (state), Victoria, the Austral ...

Background

Couchman was born in

Wollongong, New South Wales Wollongong ( ; Dharawal: ''Woolyungah'') is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near water' or 'sound ...

. He has 3 siblings: Toby Couchman (twin brother), Fletcher Couchman and Harvy Couchman. He was educated at Bulli High School and played Junior Rugby League for

Thirroul Butchers The Thirroul Butchers are an Australian rugby league football team based in Thirroul, a coastal town and suburb of Wollongong. The club was formed in 1913 and entered the Illawarra Rugby League, where it still competes today. History The Thirrou ...

Playing career

Early career

Ryan played Second Row for NSW CHS at the 2021 ASSRL carnival & his strong performances were rewarded with selection in the Australian Schoolboys Merit Team. On 12 March 2023, Couchman made his

NSW Cup The NSW Cup, currently known as the Knock-On Effect NSW Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a rugby league competition for clubs in New South Wales. The competition has a history dating back to the NSWRFL's origins in 1908, starting off as a reserve ...

debut against the

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilitated by ...

. He has scored 4 tries for the NSW Cup team out of 20 appearances. He played in the . On 13 March 2023, him and his twin brother

Toby Toby is a given name in many English-speaking world, English speaking countries. The name is derived the Middle English vernacular form of Tobias. Tobias itself is the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew טוביה ''Toviah'', which translates t ...

both extended their contracts with the Dragons until the end of the 2025 NRL Season.

NRL career

In round 18 of the 2023

season, Couchman was named as the replacement player for the

Dragons A dragon is a magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in Western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depict ...

in their

local derby A sports rivalry is intense competition between athletic teams or athletes, affecting participants, management, and supporters all to varying degrees. One of the first known sports rivalries occurred in the Roman Empire between the Blues and th ...

match with the

Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks The Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the Sutherland Shire of Southern Sydney, Southern Sydney, New South Wales. Cronulla compete in the National Rugby League (NRL), Australasia's premier rugb ...

. He was also named as the replacement player in rounds 19 and 22. In round 23, he made his first grade debut, playing for 37 minutes on the interchange in St. George Illawarra's 26−20 loss to the

Parramatta Eels The Parramatta Eels are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Parramatta that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL). The Parramatta District Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1947, and ...

Western Sydney Stadium Western Sydney Stadium, currently known as CommBank Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-purpose stadium in the suburb of Parramatta, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It replaced the demolished Parramatta Stadium (1986) which in turn ...

2024

Couchman played six matches for St. George Illawarra in the

2024 NRL season The 2024 NRL season was the 117th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 27th season run by the National Rugby League (NRL). The season consisted of 27 competition rounds, followed by a finals series contested by the top eight ...

as the club finished 11th on the table. On 13 November the Dragons announced that Couchman had re-signed with the club on a three year deal.

2025

Couchman played for St. George Illawarra in their round one match against Canterbury-Bankstown but he left the field with a knee injury during the game.

External links

Dragons profilecareer statistics, season stats, games, tries, goals, tackles and fantasy scores

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Couchman, Ryan 2003 births Living people Australian rugby league players Australian twins St. George Illawarra Dragons players Rugby league locks Rugby league second-rows Rugby league players from Wollongong 21st-century Australian sportsmen