LEON Cameron is still wrestling with how to restructure his forward line after Jeremy Cameron's off-season exit but says recruit Jesse Hogan is ticking every box to fill the void in round one.
Hogan, who joined the GIANTS on a one-year deal following previous stints with Melbourne and Fremantle, is doing two of the three football sessions each week as the GIANTS nurse him back from a foot injury.
GIANTS coach Cameron said the 25-year-old was adjusting to his new club and state as well as could be expected.
"It's a huge challenge for Jesse," Cameron said.
"We know his story and some of his challenges with his body and anxiety and the mental health issues he's confronted, and the family challenges he's had.
"I think he put his hand up at the end of the year and said, 'I just need to get out of a football fanatic state like Western Australia or Victoria' and thought his football might excel in a non-football-dominant state.
"He made that choice and we made that choice that we really wanted to give him an opportunity to see if his footy can progress.
"He wants to show the GIANTS and the footy world he can contribute on the field.
"You take your hat off to people that put themselves out there and that's what Jesse is doing."
Hogan, the 2015 NAB AFL Rising Star who booted 85 goals from 41 games in his first two seasons, is living with Shane Mumford, his wife Eva and their two children as he settles in to his third club.
After foot and back injuries hampered Hogan's 2020 season, the GIANTS are walking a "fine line" with bringing him back to full fitness.
He is in full training on Mondays and Fridays and "off legs" on Wednesday.
Early in the pre-season he has impressed with his work-rate and contested marking. He will definitely play as a forward after the Dockers briefly trialled him as a defender at training in 2020.
Cameron said he was still figuring out the GIANTS' best forward line set-up following the free agency move of his namesake to Geelong during the off-season.
Jeremy Cameron has led the club's goalkicking in every one of its nine seasons, and played alongside Harry Himmelberg and Jeremy Finlayson in a three-pronged tall attack the past two seasons.
Jake Riccardi emerged as an outstanding prospect late last season, kicking nine goals in his five appearances.
"It mightn't be three talls, it might be two, we might go with more medium players," Cameron said.
"There's challenges for spots there. Definitely two, maybe three, and Finlayson wants a spot, Hogan wants a spot, Himmelberg wants a spot and Riccardi wants a spot.
"It's hard to have all four of them in there.
"We're starting to build a bit of synergy centre-forward and working out what players can do and what their strengths are.
"We understand that can take time, but I still can't hide my excitement, I'm looking forward to seeing how that goes."
Cameron said a best-case scenario for Hogan would be playing between 18 and 22 games.
"If he's playing that amount of games, he's earning his spot, contributing, and what we've seen in the past when he does play regularly, he can hit the scoreboard.
"The way he's progressing he's definitely going to be available from the start, which he probably hasn't had for three or four years.
"He's had challenges with his mental health and his belief, belief in playing the game regularly.
"We believe if we can instill, bit by bit, belief back in him and his body that he can compete week in and week out, you're reconstructing a player that can play at a very high level."