TOM SCULLY'S post-football ambition to run a marathon shouldn't be an issue for the GWS midfielder, if his remarkable 2017 running statistics are anything to go by.
It's no surprise Scully blew the competition away last season when it came to raw, gut-running numbers. He's been considered one of the League's elite runners since his 2010 debut.
It's also a feat not lost on the game's experts, with former Brisbane Lions captain Jonathan Brown last year describing him as the "best two-way runner" he'd ever seen.
Champion Data says Scully, in 2017, was only rotated 18 times after half-time, and played 91 per cent of all games, which was the highest of any player.
For the first time, the statistics provider has made "player tracking" data, which includes categories like total distance run, maximum speed, number of sprints and distance covered at high speed, accessible to people outside the clubs.
And, unsurprisingly, Scully has been a consistent feature throughout some of these sub-groups.
In most distance covered, Scully occupied the top four spots of the top 10, as well as sixth, eighth and 10th.
The furthest he ran in 2017 was 18.34km against Collingwood in round eight.
Brisbane midfielder Nick Robertson broke up the Scully domination by running 17.63km in round 19 for the fifth overall furthest distance, while West Coast's Andrew Gaff bobbed up twice at seventh and ninth.
It wasn't just total distance where Scully shone.
He completely dominated the field when it came to the most distance covered at high speed, posting the top 12 performances in the competition across the entire season.
At best, Scully covered 4.81km at high speed (again, in round eight). You have to go all the way down to 13th to find another name, which was Fremantle's Brad Hill (4.06km).
"Tom Scully is a freak runner and he can cover the ground at speed," this year's AFL Prospectus, published by Champion Data, said.
While Scully's ridiculous endurance sets him apart from other midfielders, he hasn't just evolved into an athlete who occasionally finds the ball.
In 2017, the former No.1 draft pick won a second-straight All Australian nomination, finished fifth in the best and fairest, and his kick rating was ranked elite at +4.6 per cent, which was the first time that figure had been in the positive in his career.
So, while the meticulous preparer continues to make an impact as a hard-running midfielder who can find the goals, his tracking numbers suggest he shouldn't have too much trouble suiting up for that marathon when his playing days are done.
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