Having not seen a huge amount of Cogger, everything I've read about him suggests he's a decent general on field. If we wind up with him and Lewis in the halves at any stage, I'd be happy if Cogger sticks to organizing the game with the occasional attempted line break when a play is on. Lewis seems like the energetic type that injects himself with every chance he gets and has a decent kicking game. They could really compliment each other if Foran cops an injury. But people are going to have to learn to judge him on his strengths rather than just expecting a running half which is very popular and seems to be what people want on here. To some extent I think that halves that rely fully on the apparent moments of brilliance that running shows can be a bit selfish. I used to think Hokko got a bad wrap because he lacked an explosive running game, but made decisions and directed the play quite well. We've seen that a half can have a good running game but still be useless for the 98% of the game when they don't have an opportunity to shine with that side of their game with the years of Mbye. I think while Hokko was here the balance between high energy and an organizer was good with Reynolds alongside him, even at origin level. Reynolds didn't develop his kicking game a great deal until his last couple of years with us when the occasional grubber was thrown in along with the low cross field kick that Hasler seemed to love in attacking situations. I think the club has made a good decision in recruiting someone who's strength lies in presenting good opportunity to the players who just need good ball to shine. We as a fan base need to recognize that playmakers don't have to be polished finishers to benefit the side well.
We won't know for a while how good or bad a signing we've made and I suspect that people will be very quick to jump on anything they see as less than ideal play from Cogger. But if he can draw defenders to set up an outside back and put in kicks that add pressure in attacking situations he's got a skillset that we would do well to base our game plan on. Frawley in my opinion took too long to get set for kicks or he'd have ticked plenty of boxes for me. His kicking game was promising, but with a hooker that took forever to get a pass away he was always going to struggle for time. I hope Cogger can process what he sees developing in the defensive line and translate that into good choices most of the time. But it would be a big help to him if we get our hooking department on song with passing. I don't know that Lichaa has got the ability or inclination to offer the passing game needed. But hopefully if he doesn't show it again next year, pay can promote or develop someone that can give our players more time and direction. Our forwards don't seem to be able to hit the ball at pace like they can with a rep level hooker and likewise, our halves need the time to read the play to make the most impact.
