The Hamilton Tiger-Cats have added hipster kicker Hugh O’Neill to their practice roster. He was released by Edmonton in the off-season, picked up by Saskatchewan just before the free agency deadline, and dropped by the Riders as one of their last cuts before the start of the season.
O’Neill is best known for the impressive crop of shrubbery on his face, but he was a serviceable kicker for Edmonton in the 2014 season. His punting was reasonable, averaging over 43 yards, although he was around the three-quarters mark for field goal accuracy.
That said, there were years where the Ticats would have settled for a fifty-fifty chance on field goals. But with Justin Medlock taking the kicking duties, Hamilton is not hurting for accuracy.
The main reason O’Neill was picked up by Hamilton was probably insurance. Even though Medlock is in good form now, a tweak in a hamstring or a bad tackle on a return could sideline him, and there are no other starter-ready options on the bench. Putting a Canadian kicker in the player pool is just good insurance.
The other possibility is for punting. While Medlock’s punting average is not as high as O’Neill’s, it’s only a yard less; Kent Austin isn’t going to swap kickers for a small increase in punting distance.
But where Medlock struggles on punts is accuracy. Twice in the Calgary game, a sidelined punt would have put Calgary inside their own twenty yard-line; instead one was fielded for a sizeable return, and the other landed in the end zone for a rouge and a move upfield.
As a National player, O’Neill won’t require any roster juggling and may provide a much-needed weapon in the Ticats special teams arsenal. A smart pickup by the Tiger-Cats brass.
