OUT-OF-favour forward Jarrad Waite still has plenty to offer Carlton, his teammate Lachie Henderson says.

 

Speculation has swirled around Waite's future at Visy Park after he was recently dropped to the VFL for the second time this season.

 

The 194cm veteran is out of contract at the end of 2014 and is fighting for a spot with younger talls Henderson, Levi Casboult and Simon White – who each booted four goals against St Kilda last round.

 

But Henderson believes there's still room for the 31-year-old in Carlton's forward line.

 

"Waitey's been a great player for a long time and it's a bit hard for him at the moment with us playing how we played last week," Henderson told AFL.com.au.

 

"He played some really good footy last week (three goals in the VFL), so he'll back in at some point.

 

"I'd love to see him at the club next year."

 

Carlton coach Mick Malthouse revealed after Saturday night's 71-point loss to the Sydney Swans that Waite won't line-up for what would have been his third-straight VFL game on Sunday due to a calf injury.

 

Form and fitness battles have limited the 178-game veteran to 10 senior matches in Carlton's difficult season.

 

Injuries have told part of the story of the Blues' woes, with Andrew Carrazzo (calf), Chris Judd (Achilles), recruit Sam Docherty (quad), Matthew Kreuzer (foot) and Henderson (groin) suffering restricted pre-seasons.

 

The Blues never got up and running after losing their opening four games and have slipped to 5-11 and 14th spot on the ladder after the loss to the Swans.

 

But Henderson refused to blame injuries for the Blues' disappointing campaign.

 

"We've had a lot of injuries, but every team's had injuries. You can't use that as an excuse," he said.

 

Instead, the 24-year-old, who finished third in the club champion award last season, echoed Malthouse's comments on Saturday night that Carlton has to eradicate its lapses during games.

 

"We've had an inconsistent year and we've been inconsistent over a long time," Henderson said.

 

"We just need to find some consistency.

 

"We're getting these young boys all starting to step up and push these older boys a bit further, which is always a good thing.

 

"And then it's just training, you've got to find that consistency at training."