We finally saw some of the best of Jayden Laverde in his fifth season, after yet another season started late due to omnipresent soft tissue injures and lack of consistent form. His best included four multiple-goal hauls in his nine senior appearances, but he reached 15 disposals only twice and rarely threatened the forward baseline. Laverde has the body shape to be a decent third tall forward, using his talents off the ball to contribute to the team without being any sort of accumulator of leather handles himself. His ceiling appears to be the bottom six of Essendon's best 22, which makes him useless in fantasy draft leagues.
No green light on Laverde
We finally saw some of the best of Jayden Laverde in his fifth season, after yet another season started late due to omnipresent soft tissue injures and lack of consistent form. His best included four multiple-goal hauls in his nine senior appearances, but he reached 15 disposals only twice and rarely threatened the forward baseline. Laverde has the body shape to be a decent third tall forward, using his talents off the ball to contribute to the team without being any sort of accumulator of leather handles himself. His ceiling appears to be the bottom six of Essendon's best 22, which makes him useless in fantasy draft leagues.
Surely Laverde's luck changes
Persistent hamstring problems ruined another season for Jayden Laverde, after ankle and shoulder complaints had done the same the three previous years. He posted just his second 20-disposal game in round 6, and his first bag of three goals in round 23, but has severely lacked continuity. We may never see the best of Laverde at this rate. Even a decent preseason is no guarantee that he will see out a season in the seniors, as he spent time in the VFL last year following a form drop. It would show an unwarranted level of faith to burn a pick on him in a fantasy draft.
Laverde on the verge
An ankle injury delayed Jayden Laverde's return to the senior side until round 18 last year, and he never got enough match fitness to build on his promising end to 2016. Only one of his 24 senior games across three seasons have come before round 15, and he has reached 20 disposals only once. If he can have a full preseason at some point, Laverde is worth watching as he hasn't really been able to translate his strong VFL form to the seniors yet. Fans who are backing the Dons to challenge for top four will probably stow him away on their benches with a late pick, as he has significant upside.
