STRENGTHS:

+ Competitiveness
+ Consistency
+ Intercept marking
+ Kicking
+ Rebounding

IMPROVEMENTS:

- Composure
- Strength

Jaques is a joy to watch in full flight and can just about do it all down back. He is often entrusted with the kick-in duties and distributes the ball beautifully. It's no wonder, then, that he opted to go by foot with 16.9 of his average 22.6 disposals this Coates Talent League season. He is polished too, going at 78 per cent disposal efficiency during the National Championships.

There is good variety to Jaques' kicking, able to launch the ball long or pick out short targets with exceptional vision. The latter method sees him either be adventurous with inboard passes, or run hard to follow up and get the ball back. Either way, Jaques is capable of gaining quick metres and sparking daring transitional play by taking the game on.

A key facet of Jaques' positional versatility is his ability to play deep or high in defence. On the last line, he mops up the spills and quickly relieves pressure with his ball use, seemingly always getting to the height or fall of the contest. Beyond defensive 50 he charges forward with repeat running spurts, and peels off to intercept with genuine bravery and flair.

While still relatively lightly framed, Jaques is willing to put his body on the line when flying for overhead marks. His best grabs come when jumping over the back of opponents, and he averaged six marks per game in Falcons colours. He also applies himself in a tackling sense, though can still build some strength to stick them more consistently.

Further filling out his 184cm frame will allow Jaques to hold his composure more consistently under physical pressure. He has the capacity to quickly identify and hit up targets by hand and foot, but is sometimes rushed into dumping the ball long with oncoming heat or when streaming forward at full tilt. It will also aid his improved intercept marking game.

In terms of overall consistency, though, Jaques seldom fails to perform. He was recognised as one of the Falcons' best six players in all bar two of his 14 appearances this season, and started the campaign with five disposal hauls of 25 or more in his first seven outings. That kind of output, on top of his evolution as a player, made him a reliable figure in his role.