GOLD Coast skipper Gary Ablett has extended his lead at the top of the Official AFL Player Ratings, brought to you by Gatorade, after recording the highest score in round nine.

Ablett's 37 disposals and four goals equated to 33.7 points, which was the 17th-best score since the player ratings began in 2010.

It was the fifth-best score recorded by Ablett and meant he was the highest scorer in a round for the 12th time (no other player has top-scored in a round more than six times).

Ablett now has eight of the top 24 scores. He is the only player who appears in the top 24 more than once.

In addition, he has been best-on-ground a total of 34 times. Jobe Watson (16), Joel Selwood (15) and Ryan Griffen (15) are next on that list.

Sydney Swans star Lance Franklin recorded the second-highest score of the weekend.

His 18 disposals, eight marks and five goals earned him 26 points. His teammate Josh Kennedy was next best in that game with 24.5 points.

Kennedy's effort propelled him from ninth on the ratings table to sixth.

Fremantle's Michael Johnson has cracked the top 50 for the first time in his career, in the process overtaking North Melbourne’s Scott Thompson as the second-highest key defender on the ratings table (Geelong's Harry Taylor is the No.1 key defender).

Johnson has recorded the most metres gained per game of any key defender. He also ranks fourth in the competition for intercept possessions since the start of 2012.

 

Melbourne's Dom Tyson was another of round nine's star performers.

Tyson had 23 disposals at 87 per cent efficiency, kicked two goals, assisted two scores and was involved in a total of 10 of Melbourne’s scoring chains.

That earned him 20.4 points and best-on-ground honours.

 

Ablett remains the leading scorer this season with 198.8 points. He leads Collingwood's Scott Pendlebury (166.8) and Essendon's Jobe Watson (164.6).

Magpies youngster Tom Langdon continues to lead the way when it comes to first-year players.

Langdon has tallied 91.1 points, while St Kilda's Luke Dunstan has 85.8 and Brisbane Lion James Aish has 84.3.