St George Illawarra twin brothers Ryan and Toby Couchman have simultaneously emerged as two of the most promising young forwards in the NRL.  Cricket had the Waughs, rugby union had the Ellas and the Fainga’as, the AFL has Ben and Max King. Check out the impressive history of twins in premiership rugby league.   Robert and William Cockburn  The first pair of twins to feature in the premiership. Winger/centre William Cockburn debuted for Newtown in 1916 and enjoyed his best season in 1918, crossing for nine tries in 12 games. He was also joined by centre Robert that year, the brothers appearing together nine times in 1918-19.   Both finished up at Newtown in 1919, but…

While the dread second-year syndrome has stymied the progress of many a rookie star during their sophomore season, a host of the game’s brightest talents have continued to forge their path to the game’s highest echelons with a stellar follow-up campaign.   Phil Blake  Blake exploded onto the scene in the second half of 1982, scoring nine tries and featuring at halfback in Manly’s Grand Final loss on the way to winning the Dally M Rookie of the Year gong.   He was even better in 1983, scoring 27 tries in 23 games – a premiership record for a No.7. But predictions of future…

A bumper crop of newcomers burst onto the NRL scene in 2025, with Roosters centre Robert Toia dux of the class to take Dally M Rookie of the Year honours ahead of Warriors game-breaker Leka Halasima, gifted Eels fullback Isaiah Iongi and Raiders rake Owen Pattie.   But the spotlight will intensify on the breakout stars this season as they look to avoid the dreaded ‘second-year syndrome’.   The modern era is littered with brilliant tyros who struggled to back up their rookie-season heroics. These are the most noteworthy cases.   Jim Leis  The first Dally M Rookie of the Year recipient in 1980,…

The Australian Rugby League Commission’s update to the State of Origin eligibility criteria has been one of the biggest stories of the rugby league off-season.   Eliminating the Tier One nation restriction – which prevented players otherwise eligible for Queensland or New South Wales from also representing New Zealand and England – has been met with a mixed response but modernises the game and reflects its changing face.   Under the new rules, Queensland star Kalyn Ponga will be free to change his international allegiance from Australia to New Zealand, while former Kiwi and current Tonga rep Addin Fonua-Blake is now a frontline 2026 NSW Origin contender, and long-serving Kiwi Briton Nikora is a big Maroons chance.  Meanwhile, Victor Radley is…

The 2026 NRL season is here and if the off-season noise is anything to go by, we’re in for absolute chaos in the best possible way. Heavyweights are loading up, young guns are ready to explode, and there’s already steam coming for a couple of smoky premiership plays. The Panthers are chasing history again, the Broncos look primed to go one better, and don’t sleep on a couple of teams who’ve quietly won the summer on the recruitment front. Below, Will Evans goes through every team in the comp, including the key ins and outs, their form from last year,…