Collingwood’s No.6 draft pick Jaidyn Stephenson pushing for Round 1 debut against Hawthorn
PRIZED Collingwood recruit Jaidyn Stephenson has put to bed any fears his heart condition could hold him back, with the No.6 pick pushing for a Round 1 debut and has already established himself as the quickest player at the Magpies.
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COLLINGWOOD will give explosive half forward Jaidyn Stephenson every chance to push for a Round 1 debut after impressive summer form.
The No.6 draft selection made his debut in Pies colours in the AFLX on Thursday night after quickly dispatching concerns about a heart condition.
Labelled by Nathan Buckley as clearly the quickest player in Collingwood colours, he is a line-breaking half forward who also hits the scoreboard.
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Collingwood was reassured by medical experts the condition was controlled by medication and it has not caused any issues over summer.
Like Brisbane’s No.1 pick Cam Rayner before him, he is considered a good chance to sign a two-year contract extension even this early in his tenure.
Dubbed by some as the most exciting player in the draft, the lightning speed he provides could be a valuable point of difference in the Collingwood front six.
Small forward Jamie Elliott is no certainty to play in Round 1 after ankle surgery, while Alex Fasolo is still recovering from shoulder surgery.
Pies footy boss Geoff Walsh said on Thursday after a strong pre-season Daniel Wells was battling achilles soreness, while Darcy Moore will return to full training next week after his own achilles issues.
Buckley said this week Stephenson’s 188cm, 77kg frame was the impediment to an early debut rather than his clear talent.
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The Pies have had bad luck with injury-prone early draft picks Nathan Freeman and Matt Scharenberg but the buzz about Stephenson is impossible to ignore.
“Jaidyn has been exciting in training, he is the quickest player on our list by far and shows us those attributes every training session,’’ Buckley said.
“He expresses himself with his footy and we are encouraging him to do that.
“He is not a big fella so how he handles the game at the top level, he will be fine.
“I would expect him to play this year, he is definitely in the mix for JLT and he is a confident young man who is going places fast.”
Stephenson told the Herald Sun only minutes after he was drafted the heart issue would have no affect on his football.
“It has got something to do with the electrics of the heart, so it came up in an ECG,” he said. “Structurally it’s all fine but in the ECG it shows a bit of a funny result.
“It is still not yet diagnosed. It’s still a query and we are doing genetic testing but it’s not diagnosable yet.
“I am on basic propranolol (beta blockers), I am on two of them three times a day and it’s the only hassle.”
Stephenson has an ideal balance of speed and endurance, ranking ninth in the 20m sprint (2.97sec) and eighth in the 2km time trial.
Buckley told the AFL website the Pies loved the talent of second-year small forward Kayle Kirby but is urging him to continue improving his fitness
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