Cody Ramsey missed his second consecutive year of rugby league this past season as he continues to battle serious health problems which have derailed his burgeoning NRL career with St George Illawarra.
Ramsey was hospitalised with ulcerative colitis in 2022 and has since undergone multiple surgeries as he struggles to overcome the illness.
He was originally taken to hospital after experiencing pain in his stomach during a long-distance run at pre-season training under former Dragons coach Anthony Griffin.
The club’s General Manager of Football, Ben Haran, then later confirmed the inflammatory bowel condition would sideline him for an extended period of time.
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Will Cody Ramsey play NRL again? Dragons star provides latest injury and illness update
"I went to surgery and woke up...and by this time I was 62 kilos," Ramsey recently told A Lot To Talk About podcast while recounting his horror ordeal.
"I was 90kg when I first went in. So, in the space of about six to eight weeks, I'd lost 28kgs with five kilos of my bowel taken out.
"I remember sitting there - and I had caught Covid after surgery - and I had a stomach full of staples and a bag.
"A couple of days after surgery, I woke up in bed and I looked down and all the staples had split open, so I just had this massive hole in my stomach. I went back to hospital and had that wound for a year."
As well as the physical impact the illness had had on Ramsey, he admitted the emotional toll of being unable to play rugby league was also massive.
"To sit there on the sidelines and know that you can't go out to play, it's something I'd never experienced," Ramsey said.
"I'm still like that to this day. Every game I'd call my mum and I'd just be crying."
However, Ramsey has since returned to the paddock and is confident of resuming his NRL career in the future.
"I was always confident that I'd be able to come back and play footy," Ramsey declared.
"In that first surgery I was told I'd never play football again but I just laughed and said to my dad, 'I will'...There was a doubt in my head about it being possible but once another surgeon said once my stomach was sealed I'd be good to go, it wasn't in the back of my mind.
"The first time I trained with the boys was in Round 15 this year...and then I got to the point where I was doing weights and felt like I was flying. I thought I was ready, but I was nowhere near ready weight-wise.
"I've still got a while to go but I believe I'll get more weight on over this pre-season faster because I know what to do now.
"I believe the comeback will come earlier than what everyone expects.
"I'm going balls to the wall to come back and prove everyone who believes in me right."
What happened to Cody Ramsey?
Ramsey was hospitalised with ulcerative colitis in 2022 after falling ill during pre-season training.
"Cody was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, an inflammatory bowel condition, in late 2022 which required an extended stay in hospital," Haran noted at the time of the incident.
"Unfortunately, this ultimately required significant bowel surgery. This surgery was successful.
"It will require multiple follow-up procedures over the coming season. This means that Cody won’t be available to play NRL in the 2023 season."
However, this initial diagnosis has since been prolonged with the prospect also ruled out of the 2024 campaign.
"He’s had a real battle with his illness and then post-illness, he just seems to be getting on top of it and then he gets another infection," Shane Flanagan said at the start of the year.
"He’s been in and out of hospital a lot of times - he’s lost a lot of weight.
"It’s about just getting back to normal health. Football is probably a long way down the track.
"If we can get him 12 months out of hospital and looking after himself, put some weight on him then there’s a chance he can come back and play rugby league."
Cody Ramsey NRL stats
| Appearances | 36 |
| Tries | 14 |
| Try Assists | 6 |
| Linebreaks | 22 |
| Average Running Metres | 81m |
| Tackle Efficiency | 81% |
