Essendon will unearth a 14th debutant this season, with Jayden Nguyen to play his first AFL game against Sydney this Saturday.
The first player of Vietnamese descent in the history of VFL/AFL football, the Category B Rookie from the Bombers’ James Hird Academy will live out his childhood dream after an impressive run of recent form in the VFL.
Despite a setback at the halfway point of the year with a foot injury, the 177cm defender has shown his potential in spades on either side of it – a combative player with a rapid turn of pace, his unwavering attack on the ball and defence-first mindset has made him a standout in a largely undermanned VFL outfit.
With the announcement, Essendon now holds the AFL-era record (excluding expansion Clubs) for debutants in a single season, besting Fitzroy’s previous number of 13 back in 1991.
Having been at the NEC Hangar since his early teens via the NGA program, Nguyen is grateful for his opportunity and hoping to continue inspiring his community along his AFL journey.
“I’m just trying to take it all in. I’d just woken up from a nap and I'm like ‘Scotty's calling me? What's up there?’,” Nguyen said.
“He told me to keep my plans for this weekend free because they were about to get a fair bit better. It was the last thing I was expecting to hear, I’m still in a bit of shock.
“I told the family as soon as I ran out of the room and my dad just started running around the house screaming. It was so bloody good.
“It's been a long, long journey working through our NGA program from being a 12-year-old to now. I spent so much time in the Club when I was younger, I idolised a lot of these players and it was a dream for me one day to put on the sash.
“There's no better feeling than playing footy with your best mates and that’s what I get to do this weekend. That’s when all the enjoyment comes and all the energy sparks, so I can’t wait to get out there with them and show the Dons supporters what we're all about and how close we are.
“I just want to be a figure that Vietnamese and Asian children can look up to and hopefully show them that their dream is possible and that they can do it.
“For me to take a step in this direction, I feel like I'm pretty proud of myself, but hopefully I can make others proud that have helped me along the journey to where I am.
“To have the opportunity to represent such a great club, I’m just super happy and can't wait to get started on my journey.”
