Dannnnnnnnnn
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- Aug 24, 2012
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Thought I may as well get this going with my write-up for Jayden Laverde from the BF phantom draft thread as well as a few other bits and pieces. He's a really intriguing prospect who, realistically, could go anywhere from pick 5 to pick 20ish, depending on how high a club sees his ceiling being.
Jayden Laverde
Height: 189cm
Weight: 82kg
Position: Utility
Strengths: The biggest thing with Jayden is that he's truly versatile - short of the ruck, he can play anywhere on the ground to a high level. Laverde is a brilliant kick off both sides of the body, pulling off excellent passes and setting up his teammates more often than not. He has good defensive awareness without it necessarily being the best part of his game, which enables him to play in the back half and put his kicking skills to good use. He reads the play very well and peels off his man when necessary, taking intercept possessions and really hurting the opposition the other way. Complemented by this is his pace. Laverde is not a truly explosive runner, but he has some real breakaway pace that allows him to break the lines and gain an extra few metres for his side. This, combined with his agility and awareness, makes him quite a difficult player to catch. It also makes him effective on the lead, especially up forward. He creates separation on defenders with ease, especially if he is given a head start due to improper defensive positioning or poor awareness. He's also a good overhead mark with excellent ability one-on-one, putting his size to good use and allowing him to compete if he doesn't get out on a lead.
Through the midfield he plays predominantly as an outside receiver, and it is a role he does exceptionally well. His athleticism commonly allows him more time and space than you'd like to give such a good kick, and his awareness and footy IQ aid him to peel off and get in a position to do some real damage. His contested game isn't brilliant but I see it projecting as a real strength in the future, with both his ability at ground level and his bigger body contributing. He puts his height to good use and is able to grab those connecting marks, or to be a good option on the kick-out.
In short, it's his versatility - combined with his excellent skills - that puts him over the line for me.
What he needs to work on: His contested game is probably the first area of improvement. He's not terrible by any means but it's not at a level where you can consider it a genuine strength. He will win his own ball when he has to, but he's not the kind of player you would chuck on-ball in the dying stages of a close game. At the moment he's that pacy outside runner that gives you some creativity and flair going through the midfield, but for him to continue to progress his game you want him to become that sort of player that you can totally rely on inside and out. He has the tools, he just has to work at them.
Secondly, I imagine the club that selects him will be quick to reel in his flair. Not to drop it completely - as it's what makes his game unique - but as somebody that likely begins his career running off half back he can't take the dangerous option as often as he does. At the moment he can try to push past his limitations a bit too often and it can result in shanked kicks or poor decisions, which have left his team vulnerable to opposition scores off turnovers. You don't want to take that tendency to be dangerous with possession away from him - as, more often than not, his intentions work out - but it does need to be limited to fit more into team 'policy.'
Laverde is prone to inconsistency and fade outs during games, however this is something I see being ironed out relatively quickly. A lot of the time it just seems to be a lack of concentration however endurance may play a part. It will take some work but I can see him being able to improve this significantly over a period of time. The beauty with Laverde is that he is a reliable option defensively, meaning that even if he isn't at his best offensively, his opponent rarely gets totally off the leash.
Past that, for me, it is simply just continuing to put some muscle on that frame to aid him further inside and around the ground.
------------------
Really nice mark taken by Jayden in round 14 of the TAC Cup this year:
And a highlights video, courtesy of Skippos (these are fantastic by the way mate, kudos
):
Some articles:
Western Jets star Jayden Laverde a contender
Western Jet Jayden Laverde shines, lands all-Australian selection
Jayden Laverde
Height: 189cm
Weight: 82kg
Position: Utility
Strengths: The biggest thing with Jayden is that he's truly versatile - short of the ruck, he can play anywhere on the ground to a high level. Laverde is a brilliant kick off both sides of the body, pulling off excellent passes and setting up his teammates more often than not. He has good defensive awareness without it necessarily being the best part of his game, which enables him to play in the back half and put his kicking skills to good use. He reads the play very well and peels off his man when necessary, taking intercept possessions and really hurting the opposition the other way. Complemented by this is his pace. Laverde is not a truly explosive runner, but he has some real breakaway pace that allows him to break the lines and gain an extra few metres for his side. This, combined with his agility and awareness, makes him quite a difficult player to catch. It also makes him effective on the lead, especially up forward. He creates separation on defenders with ease, especially if he is given a head start due to improper defensive positioning or poor awareness. He's also a good overhead mark with excellent ability one-on-one, putting his size to good use and allowing him to compete if he doesn't get out on a lead.
Through the midfield he plays predominantly as an outside receiver, and it is a role he does exceptionally well. His athleticism commonly allows him more time and space than you'd like to give such a good kick, and his awareness and footy IQ aid him to peel off and get in a position to do some real damage. His contested game isn't brilliant but I see it projecting as a real strength in the future, with both his ability at ground level and his bigger body contributing. He puts his height to good use and is able to grab those connecting marks, or to be a good option on the kick-out.
In short, it's his versatility - combined with his excellent skills - that puts him over the line for me.
What he needs to work on: His contested game is probably the first area of improvement. He's not terrible by any means but it's not at a level where you can consider it a genuine strength. He will win his own ball when he has to, but he's not the kind of player you would chuck on-ball in the dying stages of a close game. At the moment he's that pacy outside runner that gives you some creativity and flair going through the midfield, but for him to continue to progress his game you want him to become that sort of player that you can totally rely on inside and out. He has the tools, he just has to work at them.
Secondly, I imagine the club that selects him will be quick to reel in his flair. Not to drop it completely - as it's what makes his game unique - but as somebody that likely begins his career running off half back he can't take the dangerous option as often as he does. At the moment he can try to push past his limitations a bit too often and it can result in shanked kicks or poor decisions, which have left his team vulnerable to opposition scores off turnovers. You don't want to take that tendency to be dangerous with possession away from him - as, more often than not, his intentions work out - but it does need to be limited to fit more into team 'policy.'
Laverde is prone to inconsistency and fade outs during games, however this is something I see being ironed out relatively quickly. A lot of the time it just seems to be a lack of concentration however endurance may play a part. It will take some work but I can see him being able to improve this significantly over a period of time. The beauty with Laverde is that he is a reliable option defensively, meaning that even if he isn't at his best offensively, his opponent rarely gets totally off the leash.
Past that, for me, it is simply just continuing to put some muscle on that frame to aid him further inside and around the ground.
------------------
Really nice mark taken by Jayden in round 14 of the TAC Cup this year:
And a highlights video, courtesy of Skippos (these are fantastic by the way mate, kudos
):Some articles:
Western Jets star Jayden Laverde a contender
Western Jet Jayden Laverde shines, lands all-Australian selection
