Well, I also guessed that Cocoon 2.2 has (a better) maven support. However, as I am completely new to the company as well as to Cocoon, I doubt it would be the best idea to make the entire dev team switch to Cocoon 2.2, especially as it works for them.
Maybe there's an option that would be less politically dangerous? I would prefer not to step on everyone's toes on my very first days! ;-) Peter