Mark Coughlan Information & Mark Coughlan Links at HealthHaven.com

Mark Coughlan
	Mark Coughlan
Personal information
Full name	Mark Coughlan
Nickname(s)	Cogs
Date of birth	20 April 1982 (age 27)
Place of birth	Western Australia
Recruited from	Perth
Draft	25th overall, 2000; Richmond
Height/Weight	186cm / 86kg
Position(s)	Midfielder
Club information
Current club	Richmond
Number	24
Playing career1
	1 Playing statistics to end of round 22 2009 season . ;

Mark Coughlan (born 20 April 1982) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League from 2001 to 2009.

[edit] Football career

[edit] Early career

Coughlan attended Wesley College, Perth and was selected in the 2000 National Draft in the 2nd round by Richmond at No. 25 overall. He made his AFL debut in against the Geelong Cats in round 9 of the 2001 season^[1].

[edit] Playing success

After winning the Jack Dyer Medal in 2003, Coughlan was hampered in 2004 by osteitis pubis, however he returned in 2005 and averaged more than 22 touches a game and finished the season ranked third in the competition for tackles (123) and sixth for handballs (235).

[edit] Injuries (2006-09)

After a solid start to his 2006 campaign, Coughlan fell awkwardly and ripped the Anterior cruciate ligament inside one of his knees in Round 12 against Hawthorn, ending his season. During the 2007 preseason he suffered a recurrence of his ACL knee injury, believed to have been related to slipping in the shower in December 2006^[2]. Unable to return from injury, he missed the whole of the 2007 season.

In 2008 due to ongoing hamstring injuries Coughlan was flown to Germany to receive radical treatment from controversial Dr.Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt^[3]. The treatment was successful and Coughlan returned to Australia to play the remainder of the year with the Coburg Tigers^[4] (The seconds team of the Richmond Football Club).

[edit] Return to senior football (2009)

In early 2009 during the AFL preseason, Coughlan suffered minor cartilage damage (A slight meniscus tear) in his knee during training and underwent minor arthroscopic surgery to correct the tear. ^[5]

"Cogs" made his much anticipated return for Richmond on 25 April 2009 (Anzac Day) in the club's first win of the 2009 season against North Melbourne. This marked the first time he made an appearance in the AFL since his injury in Round 12, 2006.

Following his successful comeback, columnist for The Age and Richmond team mate Nathan G. Brown described Coughlan as a very popular player and "the rarest individual I have ever met...in my 13 years of playing football"^[6].

[edit] Career end at Richmond

In the final round of the 2009 season on August 28, 2009, Coughlan was told before the game that he, along with Nathan Brown, would be delisted from the Tigers senior list and had played his final game for the club.

[edit] External links

Mark Coughlan profile on the Official AFL Website of the Richmond Football Club
Mark Coughlan's statistics from AFL Tables

[edit] References

Preceded by Wayne Campbell	Richmond Best and Fairest winner 2003	Succeeded by Joel Bowden

[0] ttp://www.fanfooty.com.au/players/profile.php?firstname=Mark&surname=Coughlan

[1] Coughlan to miss season

[2] ttp://www.realfooty.com.au/news/news/coughlan-in-germany-for-radical-treatment/2008/05/17/1210765262997.html

[3] ttp://www.richmondfc.com.au/players/playerprofile/tabid/8473/default.aspx?playerid=14429&typeid=2

[4] ttp://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,25037743-19742,00.html

[5] Nathan Brown: A little laughter to ease the pain

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

Contents