Tara Murray
New Essendon rookie Jayden Nguyen wants to be an inspiration to the Vietnamese community.
Coming from the Calder Cannons, Nguyen is the first player of Vietnamese background to be drafted to the AFL.
Both his parents were born in Vietnam before coming to Australia as refugees.
“My family is super stoked,” he said. “Obviously football isn’t prevalent in the Vietnamese culture and just for me, hopefully inspire the next generation of Vietnamese people coming through the system, be a role model for others.
“It’s an honour [to be the first one], hopefully I can use that status and inspire others towards achieving their dreams as well.”
Nguyen’s draft was a bit different to a lot of the other players.
As a Next Generation Academy player, the Bombers had the chance to nominate him and then match any bid on him during the draft.
If no bid came, the Bombers could automatically rookie list him, which is what happened.
“It’s a dream come true, every kid dreams about this and to play at a great club like this is a great honour,” he said.
“In the lead up, I had a few talks with them, [but] nothing was 100 per cent.
“I spoke to Essendon a couple of days before and the reassurance was there.
“After the draft, I got 100 per cent confirmation.”
Nguyen didn’t have to wait long to start the life of an AFL footballer, with a phone call straight after the draft telling him to come into the club the next morning.
“It was a boiler,” he said. “I think it was 37 degrees out there. The first training session was super tough, but I loved it.”
Nguyen was one of two Calder Cannons and Essendon NGA players picked by the Bombers, along with Isaac Kako.
“He is one of my best mates as well, hopefully we can build something together.”
Nguyen said the Cannons, along with his two junior clubs, Avondale Heights and Aberfeldie had all had a big impact on his career.
“Obviously starting at under-9s at Avondale Heights, [it was about] building relationships, finding an interest in footy, really motivating me to keep going.
“Aberfeldie, [I] moved there to play a high level competition, motivated me to push myself.
“The Calder Cannons are a prestigious team, [with] a lot of history, super happy to be drafted from the Calder Cannons.”
Nguyen said he was already working closely with Andrew McGrath on his craft, while skipper Zach Merrett was helping the younger guys.
He said he was focused on getting the respect from the older boys.
“Just keep chipping away and do my own work, hopefully contention for a game next year,” he said.
“I want to earn the respect of my teammates, build good relationships at the club first and go from there.”
