Midfield star Andrew Gaff retained his crown as West Coast’s endurance king in 2021, leading the club for distance covered per game during another ultra-consistent campaign.
Meanwhile, there were no surprises as Jack Petruccelle was once again clocked as the quickest Eagle.
According to data released by the AFL’s Telstra Tracker from this season, Gaff was one of only three players in the competition to average more than 15km per game.
The 29-year-old covered 15.03km a match in his 21 appearances, behind only Carlton’s Sam Walsh (15.49km) and Melbourne wingman Ed Langdon (15.3km).
Sent into the midfield at times amid injuries to engine room regulars, Liam Duggan ranked second at the club (13.89km), while hard-working tall forward Jack Darling (13.68km) showed his athletic ability by finishing third.
West Coast most distance covered per game in 2021 | |
Andrew Gaff | 15.03km |
Liam Duggan | 13.89km |
Jack Darling | 13.68km |
Jarrod Brander | 13.63km |
Josh Rotham | 13.27 |
After crossing from the Giants, recruit Zac Langdon recorded the most distance covered in a match during the round 16 loss to Sydney in Geelong.
Langdon’s 16.53km effort narrowly pipped Gaff’s round 11 gut-running performance against Essendon by just 20m.
Most distance covered in a game in 2021 | |
Zac Langdon | Rd16 v Sydney, 16.53km |
Andrew Gaff | Rd 11 v Essendon, 16.51km |
Zac Langdon | Rd 12 v Carlton, 16.32km |
Andrew Gaff | Rd2 v Western Bulldogs, 16.21km |
Zac Langdon | Rd8 v Hawthorn, 16.13km |
In the battle of the speedsters, Petruccelle topped the chart as West Coast’s fastest player.
His top pace (34.88km/h) was the 15th-quickest in the AFL this year (Essendon’s Nick Hind was No.1 at 36.07km/h) and beat his 33.6km/h effort from an injury-interrupted 2020.
The lightning-quick forward recorded a blistering 35.6km/h in round five, 2019 against Port Adelaide – the game he bagged five goals in a performance that earned him a NAB AFL Rising Star nomination.
Tying for second were gun defender Brad Sheppard, confirming one reason why he is able to shutdown some of the League’s elite small forwards, and emerging midfielder Xavier O’Neill at 34.31km/h.
West Coast's fastest players in 2021 | |
Jack Petruccelle | 34.88km/h |
Brad Sheppard | 34.31km/h |
Xavier O'Neill | 34.31km/h |
Josh Rotham | 34.06km/h |
Tom Barrass | 33.98km/h |