Toby Couchman, Ryan Couchman, Hamish Stewart and Josh Kerr have been selected in the Australian Prime Minister’s XIII for their clash in Port Moresby.
It marks the first foray into representative football for the Couchman twins and Stewart whilst Kerr adds the selection to a résumé which already consists of seven Indigenous All Star nods.
Toby Couchman, who represented the Under 19s Blues in 2022, made 22 appearances this season for the Red V averaging 143 run metres and totalling 872 tackles at close to 97 per cent efficiency.
Ryan, an Australian Schoolboy in 2021, returned from an ACL layoff in Las Vegas and went on to appear in 20 matches averaging 124 run metres and tallying 853 tackles at over 95 per cent efficiency.
Stewart last week became the youngest male player in club history to win the Dragons Medal, capping a remarkable rise for the 22-year-old.
A Gerringong Lions junior and Dragons Academy graduate, Stewart was one of only two Dragons to play in every match this season, tallying five tries and nine try assists — the most by any non-hooking forward in the premiership — along with a competition-leading 996 tackles, 18 offloads and an average of 94 run metres.
Kerr returned to the Red V this season having spent the past two-and-a-half years with the Dolphins and appeared in 19 matches showcasing his trademark offloading nous, tackle-breaking ability, and play the ball speed.
The Australian Men’s and Women’s Prime Minister’s XIII squads take on PNG PM’s XIII teams at Santos National Football Stadium in Port Moresby on Saturday, October 3.
