Workhorse Watch Round 11

Toby Couchman was breathing fire in Round 11 against the Panthers, scoring just his second ever DWH but you get the feeling he will score plenty more. Pat Carrigan and Terrell May also scored a DWH on the weekend as they are both having to carry the load with other players out injured. Despite the Dragons struggles this season, the future really does look bright with a group of young forwards that could develop into a quality NRL pack.

Big Burning Questions

• Why are the Sharks not using their edge weapons effectively?
• Cook has Liddle time left at the Dragons, will he keep starting?
• Is this the start of a MO FO comeback?
• Watson finds his way back home, lock him in for the start!
• Gilbert has a strict playing curfew, is it time to trade him?
• Lazy Leka? Could Halasima be better utilised as a centre?

Workhorse Flow

In Round 11, 71 players scored a WH, compared to 67 last season. There were 3 players that scored a DWH compared to 4 players last season. Interestingly, we have seen an increase in the total number of WH’s and DWH’s scored this season compared to season 2025.

• 2025 (711 WH’s after Round 11), 2026 (742 WH’s after Round 11) – an increase of 4%
• 2025 (20 DWH’s after Round 11), 2026 (23 DWH’s after Round 11) – an increase of 1.5%

WORKHORSE OF THE WEEK

Toby Couchman (Dragons)

65 tackles, 16 runs for 173m in 75 minutes – DWH (1.08 spm)

A superhuman performance from Couchman as he piled on 81 involvements in 75 minutes. His running metres are on the improve, averaging 129m a game this season, compared to 97m a game last season. At just 22 years of age he has a huge NRL and NRLCEO career ahead of him, with an opportunity to become the leader of the Dragons pack at such a young age. He should be one of the first props picked in drafts for years to come.

WORKING HARD

Patrick Carrigan (Broncos)

55 tackles, 14 runs for 155m in 70 minutes – DWH (0.99 spm)

Not even a stint in the sin bin can stop Carrigan scoring a DWH, his third for the season. With Haas still out, Carrigan has shouldered the extra burden, consistently playing the full 80 minutes for the Broncos. His average involvements are up on last season but his running metres are slightly down. He is such a valuable player to have in your squad, he almost always end up with a dual position as he moves from Front Row to Lock and back at the start of most seasons. He is in the prime of his career right now!

Terrell May (Tigers)

42 tackles, 19 runs for 157m in 80 minutes – DWH (0.76 spm)

No Alex Twal meant plenty of work for May but he only just made it to a DWH, even playing the full game. May’s average involvements are well down on last season (54 in 2026 compared to 63 in 2025). Whilst May has been solid this season, this was just his 2nd DWH and he is well behind his scoring from last season. This rates him as a bust as the most common #1 pick in drafts although he still has time to make up for it.

Damien Cook (Dragons)

61 tackles, 8 runs for 67m in 80 minutes – WH (0.86 spm)

It will be a sad day when we say goodbye to Captain Cook! Anyone who got on that ride when Cook was a three time NRLCEO MVP will shed a tear when he plays his final game. It will be interesting to see what happens when Jacob Liddle is fit to play, whether coach Young decides to build his combinations with Liddle as the starter and have Cook playing off the bench. In terms of NRLCEO, it could be worth looking to trade Cook out if he is your starting Hooker, as his scoring might be affected in the back half of the season.

Hamish Stewart (Dragons)

54 tackles, 10 runs for 74m in 60 minutes – WH (1.07 spm)

Stewart makes it a trio of Dragons in Working Hard, showing that the future looks bright for them with a young pack of forwards who can grow together and become a real force in the NRL. He was moved to an edge on the weekend to accommodate Ryan Couchman moving to lock so he can play in the middle. This will add value to Stewart as he potentially earns dual Back Row/Lock position. The kid just has a tremendous work rate which is perfect for NRLCEO.

HARDLY WORKING

Trent Loiero (Storm)

29 tackles, 10 runs for 84m in 66 minutes – (0.59 spm)

Loiero’s has failed to score a WH in his last 2 matches and let’s face it, if he is not scoring WH’s then he is useless in NRLCEO. The emergence of Cooper Clarke is putting pressure on Loiero to keep his starting spot and it does not look like he will play 80 minutes again any time soon. He is only 25 years of age so hardly at the end of his career but he offers almost nothing in attack and was just a set and forget WH at lock. Monitor his minutes and form closely for the next few weeks.

Teig Wilton (Sharks)

29 tackles, 9 runs for 69m in 80 minutes – (0.48 spm)

When the Sharks are at their best they are using Wilton and Nikora in almost every set in good ball areas but this has not happened much this season. Both Wilton and Nikora are well down on average metres run this season which suggests something is not quite right. They are both terrific ball runners but in Wilton’s case he had a late start to the season due to injury but he should be match fit by now, he just isn’t producing the kind of numbers he is known for. Wilton has not scored a single ME this season, which puts him well down on the list of top scoring back rowers.

Jake Trbojevic (Sea Eagles)

32 tackles, 3 runs for 25m in 51 minutes – (0.69 spm)

Are we seeing the end of Jake Trbojevic as a WH scorer? He has now scored just 4 WH’s from his 10 matches this season. He hardly runs the ball much these days, existing just to control the middle for Manly in defence. Despite his horrendous headgear, he is one failed HIA away from a long break and possibly the final hit in his career. If he is in your squad then you must be a Manly fan!

Leka Halasima (Warriors)

21 tackles, 13 runs for 125m in 67 minutes – (0.51 spm)

Halasima really doesn’t seem suited to be an starter in the NRL. I feel like he would be more effective coming on after 20-25 minutes as an impact player, or even playing at centre where he can be utilised more as a ball runner. He has only scored 3 WH’s this season and has only scored 1 try since Round 3 which is making him a liability as a starter at this point. Play him off the bench until you see some more consistency in his game.

SPUD POOL LOOKOUT

Moeaki Fotuaika (Titans)

34 tackles, 8 runs for 56m in 53 minutes – WH (0.79 spm)

Is Mo Fo back in the good books with coach Hannay. He earned his first start since early in the season ans was able to score a WH, his first for the season. With Origin at the forefront now, Moeaki will be looking to impress after being snubbed for Game 1 and rightfully so. He is the sort of player that can go through slumps but can also get in WH mood if he decides to. His best footy produces WH’s and ME’s so if he can find that he could be a handy pick up mid season.

Shawn Blore (Storm)

30 tackles, 12 runs for 106m in 80 minutes – WH (0.53 spm)

After missing the first 6 weeks with injury, Blore looks to have got his match fitness up to speed and scored his first WH of the season, as well as a ME. He scored 11 WH’s last season so he is capable of scoring them regularly, although Lisati is dominating on the other edge and seems to be the preferred option in attack for the Storm. He played the full 80 minutes on the weekend and if that continues, you can expect him to score a WH more often than not.

Loko Pasifiki-Tonga (Dragons)

33 tackles, 7 runs for 81m in 34 minutes – WH (1.18 spm)

LPT scored his first ever WH on the weekend and did it in quick time, playing just 34 minutes. I think he will continue to get better each week, as long as he remains a starter. He might be worth picking up now if you have room in your squad, before he continues to improve and more people notice.

Samuel McIntyre (Cowboys)

39 tackles, 8 runs for 63m in 80 minutes – WH (0.59 spm)

He was dropped in a lot of CEO leagues a few weeks ago when he picked up an injury so perhaps he is available in your spud pool. He has scored back to back WH’s since returning to the starting side at the expense of Jeremiah Nanai and should have that position for a few more weeks to come. His is triple position which makes him valuable for byes and injury cover but I meant what I said last week about him being more suited to the middle, still could be handy for a few weeks.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…….

Connor Watson (Roosters)

48 tackles, 11 runs for 91m in 53 minutes – WH (1.11 spm)

Watson owners rejoice! Connor finally earns a starting spot again, suiting up at lock. He scored his first WH since Round 4 and just his 3rd WH for the season. If he keep the starting lock spot then you can almost guarantee a WH each week, allowing you to use him at Hooker or Lock (once he earns the dual position). He is certainly worth taking a punt on trading in before he really gets going.

Harry Hayes (Bulldogs)

31 tackles, 10 runs for 78m in 44 minutes – WH (0.93 spm)

Hayes shows signs of WH life again after a rough month of mixed form due to injury. It would seem that the arrival of Leo Thompson has had a negative effect on Hayes, reducing his minutes and therefore his ability to score a WH on a regular basis. I still think Hayes could be used as a starter on an edge, allowing Tupouniua to provide impact off the bench (something he did very well last season).

Tom Gilbert (Dolphins)

26 tackles, 13 runs for 115m in 34 minutes – (1.15 spm)

Amazing work rate for Gilbert but the alarming stat is his time on the field, playing just 34 minutes. It has been reported that he is on a reduced workload program at the Dolphins, in an attempt to ensure he doesn’t suffer a reocurrance of a previous injury. This is a nightmare for CEO’s given that Gilbert is a dual position player and would usually be depended on for his WH each week.

Ethan Roberts (Tigers)

26 tackles, 13 runs for 113m in 61 minutes – (0.64 spm)

It appears Benji was not happy with the performance of Sione Fainu on the weekend and he could be looking at someone else to fill the hole left by his brother Samuela. Roberts made his NRL debut against Manly and looked solid. He played for the Roosters in NSW Cup last season, making the switch to Wests this season and was picked in the NRL side after just 2 games. Given the amount of injuries they have at the moment, Roberts could earn himself a starting spot in the coming weeks.

WORKHORSE PACK OF THE WEEK

• Toby Couchman – 81 (involvements)
• Damien Cook – 69
• Terrell May – 61
• Ryan Couchman – 58
• Xavier Willison – 57
• Patrick Carrigan – 69