LAVINGTON young gun Aidan Johnson remains undecided whether to pursue VFL opportunities next season.
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The talented forward has been on the recruiting radar of several VFL clubs after an outstanding debut season for the Panthers.
After starring in last year's grand final for Brock-Burrum, Johnson made a seamless transition to the higher standard of Ovens and Murray.
Johnson, 19, stamped himself as a future star of the competition after finishing second in the Doug Strang Medal with 48 goals.
He was also instrumental in the Panthers winning their first flag since 2005.
Johnson said the biggest stumbling block in regards to playing VFL was his employment as an apprentice plumber.
"I'm still undecided what I'm going to do yet," Johnson said.
"Playing VFL is an option but I'm just weighing up if I'm better off delaying it for 12 months work-wise.
"I've still got another year left before I finish my plumbing apprenticeship.
"A couple of VFL clubs have shown some interest.
"But so far its been an informal chat more than anything else."
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Did Simpson medallist Shaun Mannagh is also weighing up his options after often being overlooked by Richmond this year.
"If I was to go, it would be my preferred option to play at the same club as Shaun," Johnson said.
"I haven't really spoken to Shaun since the grand final so I'm not 100 per cent where he is up to."
Johnson paid tribute to Panthers' coach Simon Curtis for fast tracking his development this season.
"I found Simon was awesome for my development and he did show a lot of faith in me," he said.
"I called him a few times during the season and asked for some honest feedback of how I was performing and found that really beneficial.
"He really helped me out on areas that I needed to improve on, as did a few of the more experienced blokes around the club.
"Brant Dickson, Matt Pendergast and Tim Sanson spent a fair bit of time with me at training one-on-one.
"They were really helpful with their advice on how to move and where to lead."
Lavington is expected to keep its list together as it targets back-to-back flags for the first time since joining the O&M in 1979.
