{"id":213663,"date":"2026-05-07T17:44:50","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T07:44:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/?p=213663"},"modified":"2026-05-07T17:44:53","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T07:44:53","slug":"talent-league-player-focus-cooper-hodge-lions-academy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/afl\/2026\/05\/07\/talent-league-player-focus-cooper-hodge-lions-academy\/","title":{"rendered":"Talent League Player Focus: Cooper Hodge (Lions Academy)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

THERE has been plenty of talk surrounding Cooper Hodge<\/a>‘s pending decision ahead of this year’s draft, whether to follow his father-son ties to Hawthorn or continue through Brisbane’s academy pipeline. Either way, he let his footy do the talking on Sunday with a breakout Talent League performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hodge racked up a season-high tally of 32 disposals, leading all comers and prising a high of nine clearances. His dogged ball winning prowess was the standout feature of his game, showing shades of his father’s uncompromising toughness. We put Hodge’s outing under the Player Focus microscope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

>> SCROLL to see Hodge’s highlights<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"LionsLions Academy<\/a>Midfielder-Forward<\/span><\/div>

Cooper Hodge<\/h4>

Height: <\/span>183cm<\/p>

Weight: <\/span> - <\/p>

DOB: <\/span>26-07-2008<\/p><\/div><\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n

STRENGTHS:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

+ Clean hands
+ Contested ball
+ Competitiveness
+ Power
+ Tackling<\/p>\n\n\n\n

IMPROVEMENTS:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

– Kicking
– Poise<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SEASON AVERAGES:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2026 Talent League (5 games):<\/em><\/strong>
20.2 disposals, 3.2 marks, 4.2 tackles, 5.0 inside 50s, 0.6 goals<\/p>\n

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Hodge trains in Hawks colours | Image Credit: David Crosling\/Herald Sun<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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PLAYER FOCUS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

2026 Talent League: Round 7
Lions Academy 12.8 (80) def. Sandringham Dragons 8.10 (58)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

#21 <\/strong>Cooper Hodge<\/a> (Lions Academy)
Stats:<\/strong> 32 disposals* (21 contested possessions*, 43.8% efficiency), 3 marks, 6 tackles, 9 clearances*, 7 inside 50s<\/p>\n\n\n\n

* – denotes game-high tally<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBAs <\/strong>– Q1: 4\/5 | Q2: 4\/6 | Q3: 4\/7 | Q4: 3\/6 | Total: 15\/24<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FIRST QUARTER:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hodge looked to impose himself from the outset, collecting the first centre clearance with a clean take and powerful wheeling run out of the middle. While he turned the kick over, he made amends by winning it back at the next contest, highlighting his competitive appetite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was no questioning that side of his game throughout the quarter, setting a strong tone with his dogged ground level play. Hodge was strong over the ball and gritty enough to absorb tackle pressure, although his disposal suffered at times under pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hodge was prone to dumping the ball out by hand or foot, putting pressure on the next recipient, but didn\u2019t hesitate to win the hard ball. In that sense, his high-intensity style signified somewhat of a double-edged sword. Still, he handled the pill cleanly and was frequently first to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SECOND QUARTER:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The second was Hodge\u2019s quietest term, adding five disposals to his tally, which coincided with the Lions\u2019 worst scoring differential (minus-seven). He started the quarter on the bench and missed the opening two centre ball-ups, but the Lions broke even in that period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He took no time to find the ball once injected into the play, intercepting amid a centre scramble and quickly hacking the ball forward. Hodge went on to spend plenty of time forward after being nailed in a tackle around 11 minutes in, although found a way to stay busy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On two occasions he took up terrific front-and-centre positions and crumbed the second contest, snapping towards goal but falling short. He also marked on the end of the lead and sent his 45m set shot a little wide, missing out on those tough scoring opportunities while his side remained ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Hodge searches for an option | Image Credit: Rookie Me Central<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

THIRD QUARTER:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hodge\u2019s ability to prise first possession continued to shine in the second half. He won the first clearance of term three with Gus Teixeira<\/strong> hanging off him and had plenty of scrappy touches on the inside, having to deal with heavy physical attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He showed great desperation to dive on the ground ball or lunge at opponents to force a spill just as he looked to be beaten, allowing teammates to recover the ball and move forward. One such instance resulted in a late goal, proving great reward for effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another of Hodge\u2019s plays which turned defence into attack saw him intercept a Sandringham handball at centre half-back, before producing a one-two handball chain and kicking down the line. At the end of that passage came yet another Lions goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He found a little more time in congestion and made an adjustment, dishing off with intention to drive forward and receive the ball back. Even when Hodge handed it to the opposition, he amended the mistake with a hard tackle to stay engaged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FOURTH QUARTER:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hodge\u2019s centre ball-up dominance was again evident in term four, as he won the first clearance and went on to take first possession at two more restarts. He was typically clean and remained upright despite opponents riding his back, still scrapping to get a disposal away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When unable to rove the ball on the move, Hodge was willing to fight for the ball on hands and knees or apply tackle pressure to the opposition. He managed to breach the forward 50 via his work out of the middle, albeit struggling to always send the ball deep given the pressure he was under.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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