PLAYER REVIEW: #24 James Cousins
Farewell Cuz - a good player that never really got going
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Our player reviews are back and this week we are looking at the season of recently delisted midfielder, James Cousins. Was he stiff to be shown the door?
#24 JAMES COUSINS
2021 Stats:
General Summary:
In the final year of the two-year contract extension that he signed at the end of 2019, James had a lot to prove this season in order to make a name for himself and cement a spot on the list.
By the end of the season he had been given the opportunity, without an adequate body of work to show for it which could lead to another contract extension.
Not including the round five game where he was a non-playing medical substitute, Cuz recorded his longest career string of games with six on the trot through rounds five to 11.
In that run he managed his highest career disposal tally in a single game with 27 touches against the Saints in round seven, and racked up 20 plus disposals in four of those six matches.
Despite a couple of goals against North in round nine, James could only manage three games after the bye - in rounds 14, 18 and 19 where he averaged less than 20 touches per outing.
It wasn’t the successful season he had in mind both personally and for the team - in the 10 games he managed for the year he had a 1-1-8 win-draw-loss record which would have been difficult to navigate in itself.
And while his season stats were a marked improvement on his career stats to date, it was just not enough to see him take ownership as a key match-day midfielder in our starting line-up.
He can’t have had his chances of staying on the list helped by Covid-19… both the shortened seasons, smaller list sizes and huge disruption to both Box Hill seasons in 2020 and 2021 prevented further development opportunities.
Best Game:
Round 9, Hawthorn V North Melbourne
While the game itself was one of our most disappointing losses for the season, James’ performance against the Roos was the best of his 10 games for the year.
He finished the day with 23 touches, six tackles (most for the team) and two goals to go with his six inside 50’s and eight score involvements - which was more than any North Melbourne player on the day.
Hi second goal approaching the halfway mark of the final quarter brought the margin back to within a kick, and his 83% disposal efficiency proved that he actually used the ball well when he got it.
It was also the first in a string of consistent performances where he managed to gather 20 touches plus in three matches on the trot through rounds nine to 11.
Best Highlight:
Cuz upped his average tackles this year by nearly one per game against his career numbers, and it was definitely an area of his game that he improved on.
Against the Bombers in round 14, it was a brilliant effort on midfielder Zach Merrett that caught the eye - thwarting a late charge inside the Dons’ forward line.
Merrett was streaming towards attacking 50 when James turned on the afterburners to catch and execute the perfect tackle on him.
It kept us in the game, and while we didn’t end up getting the win, it was one of those efforts you look back and want to see more of from all players across the ground.
Social Love:
What you think:
Current Contract Status:
In early September Hawthorn announced five delistings at the club under the new regime of Sam Mitchell, and Cousins was one of those to get the chop. The writing was on the wall given he didn’t get to play the last few matches of the season which Mitchell used to showcase players he would be looking to hold onto.
Cousins was not picked up in the recent Delisted Free Agency period, but there are still opportunities for a club to give him another chance if they wish through the National Draft, Rookie Draft and Supplemental Selection Period.
Sign Up / Trade / Delist?
Ash says:
Not a lot to say, really. Cousins never really did enough for the selectors to consider him a best 22 player and the Hawks had too many others like him.
He might offer another club something as a rookie, but it is doubtful they will see something that Hawthorn missed, and if the incoming senior coach at the Hawks is the former VFL coach (and the Hawthorn midfield coach before then) then Cousins falls into the ‘thanks for your service and good luck elsewhere camp’.
Footy can be like that sometimes.
Andrew says:
Of all of our delistings or players moving out of the club this off-season (think Cousins, Hanrahan, O’Brien, Brooksby and even Hartley) , Cousins represents the most disappointing for me in terms of what he could have been.
Unfortunately for him we have enough ‘okay’ inside mids, and he was given enough opportunities to have a breakout game without really delivering.
Knowing that Sammy Mitchell knows Cousins and his game well, the call has been made with a clear understanding of where he would fit on the list if he stayed. I hope he gets a spot somewhere else, but just can’t see it happening.
Performed up to career expectations. About 35 career games for a #40ish Rookie draft selection is about right. Solid but not great. There is a lot of info out about these boys and so if someone is passed over or picked late it just means that a lot of other good judges have not seen anything.