Scully out in lead for running numbers

BRISBANE great Jonathan Brown described Tom Scully as the best runner of a football he has seen – and there is evidence to support him.

Scully is the AFL’s premier running man, working harder and for longer than any other player in the game this year.

For the first time, News Corp has been given exclusive access to GPS data generated by the competition’s 816 players across the 23-round homeand-away season.

How far do they run? How fast do they do it? Who digs deepest when their team has the ball and who pushes hard when they don’t?

The numbers reveal:

■ Scully averages a leaguehigh 16.6km per game and he has the four-highest distance totals this year, topped by an 18.3km effort against Collingwood in Round 8.

■ Greater Western Sydney have the three hardest-working offensive players. Scully (7.1km), Lachie Whitfield (6.51km) and Toby Greene (6.4km) average the most distance per game when their team is in possession.

■ West Coast winger Andrew Gaff is the most selfless runner, working back harder than any other player and covering the most ground (6.5km) when West Coast don’t have the ball. Interestingly, not one Giants player appears in the top five for distance covered in defence.

■ Bradley Hill is the repeat-effort king, averaging 35.3 sprints (running above 24km/h for at least one second) per game for Fremantle.

■ Kangaroos whippet Shaun Atley recorded the fastest top speed of 35.3km/h to burn off Hawthorn in Round 21.

But it’s Scully who is the AFL’s Thomas the Tank Engine.

He averages the most distance a game (4.2km) at a high speed of more than 18km/h.

Brown said Scully was peerless in his time in the AFL.

“I’m prepared to put in on record: I think Tom Scully is the best two-way runner I’ve seen,” Brown told Fox Footy this year.

“His running ability – both ways – is second to none.

“I know we’ve had some great endurance midfielders who’ve chased the ball really hard, but Scully is unbelievable.”