Damien Cook studies Cameron Smith in bid to finetune his game

When South Sydney hooker Damien Cook produces Cameron Smith-like composure under pressure this season, it won’t be a coincidence. It’s the result of hours spent studying the master.

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When South Sydney hooker Damien Cook produces Cameron Smith-like composure under pressure this season, it won’t be a coincidence.

Cook credits his strong form in 2019 to a pre-season conversation with coach Wayne Bennett urging him to emulate Smith’s pinpoint kicking and game management.

The Rabbitohs, NSW and Australian No.9 has waded through hours of Smith’s game footage in a bid to add another dimension to his game.

As a result, Cook believes his kicking has improved tenfold this season.

Cook looks up to Smith to raise his game. Image: Brett Costello

In 2018 he focused on running and passing but in ’19 he has produced 12 kicks in general play.

For context, his case study Smith has had 14 while Canberra’s Josh Hodgson is the highest ranked hooker with 29 kicks in five games.

Cook’s greater focus on adding a kick to his repertoire has helped Souths surge to second place in completed sets (156) behind the Wests Tigers.

The Rabbitohs rake says his study of Smith’s overall game has played a major role in his success so far this season.

The Souths star is focused on improving the details. Image: Brett Costello

“When Melbourne plays I like to watch what Cameron does,” Cook told The Daily Telegraph.

“Sometimes less is more and he is very good at not overplaying his hand and changing the momentum off the back of his kicking game.

“Melbourne understands that when Cam kicks, they chase and I want to build that type of confidence in my kicking game.

“I’ve always wanted to keep growing my game and improve.”

Cook says Bennett has also challenged him to evolve his game beyond his speed and pinpoint passing.

The master mentor believes the Rabbitohs No.9 has the potential and brains to become one of the NRL’s best game managers.

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“One of the first conversations with Wayne was that he wanted to help me take my game to the next level,” Cook said.

“That is what I wanted to hear as well.

“Wayne has a couple of things that he wants me to work on, like my game management.

“I’ve been really happy with my game management. It is something I’ve always wanted to bring into my game.

“Last year I had a very simple game plan to run or pass, so this year I want to build on that and bring my kicking game in.

“It (my kicking game) has been getting more consistent, which is good because it takes the pressure off Reynolds and gives us a different option as well.

“We can’t be one-dimensional. As good as Reynolds’s kicking game is, he is still going to get a lot of pressure.”

Cook is happy with his early-season form but he doesn’t want to get carried away, including discussing his likely NSW Origin recall.

“It (Origin) is still a long way away,” he said.

“One thing I have learnt this year is to put all that (representative) talk to the back of my mind.

“All that stuff will take care of itself if I’m doing the right thing for my team here at Souths.”