Battler Cowan worth punt

THERE is not much that Nathan Vardy and Josh Cowan have in common when it comes to physical attributes.

Vardy stands at 200cm and weighs 100kg. He is a supreme physical being with an abundance of natural football talent.

Cowan is 184cm and weighs 79kg. He is a dour midfielder who has not yet reached his full potential.

But despite their physical distinctions both have had to deal with horrible injury curses throughout their time in football.

Vardy and Cowan were taken by Geelong in the 2009 draft with a Cats haul that also included Daniel Menzel, Mitch Duncan, Allen Christensen and Jeremy Laidler.

Menzel’s injury battles have been well documented, and Christensen and Laidler — for different reasons — are no longer at the club.

Duncan, despite a lay-off with a broken foot in 2015, is the only one of the sextet to have had a sustained run at Geelong and will play his 157th senior game next Friday night.

The night after, Vardy will play in an elimination final for West Coast.

It is incredible to think that a guy who played just 25 matches in seven years at the Cats could string together 20 in his first season at a new club, but that is exactly what the likeable big man has managed.

Earlier this year, he told the Geelong Advertiser that after years of injuries the mental toll had become too much, and that the move out west had reignited his love and passion for the game.

Cowan is clearly in a battle to maintain his spot on the Geelong list — it comes with the territory when you are out of contract and have only played 16 games in eight years.

But he showed enough in the 11-mtach streak he put together from Round 17, 2016, through to Round 2 this year to suggest he is worth a punt for a team lacking experience in its midfield.

The Cats stuck by him for a reason and, while he might not always have been able to get out onto the ground, he has a 15-1 win-loss record and has spent eight years in one of the most successful programs in the competition.

Geelong has developed a strong culture over the past 20 years and has never had an issue seeing players who cannot get a senior game find success elsewhere.

Clubs would have to be looking at Cowan and thinking he is a low-budget option to bring in as back-up and support for a young midfield group, and the calibre of intellectual property he possesses would more than make up for any lack of on-field output.

A fresh start may not change Cowan’s luck with injuries but it only takes one club willing to give him a shot to turn around his career.

Who knows, it might even rejuvenate him in the same manner it has Vardy.