In the second edition, we take an in-depth look at which players gain the most ground for North Melbourne.
[RELATED: The Numbers Game: Inside 50's]
Disposals can only tell a fan so much during a game – how is it possible to tell the ground a player is covering with his kicks and handballs?
The metres gained statistic goes a long way to breaking it down. Quite simply it is the total metres a player’s disposals travel during a game.
There are two ways of looking at metres gained:
1. Total metres gained from disposals during a game
2. Average metres gained from each disposal
Starting with the total metres, Daniel Wells and Brent Harvey were an unsurprising one-two combination among the Kangaroos’ players in 2013.
| Player | Metres gained per game |
| Daniel Wells | 406 |
| Brent Harvey | 382.3 |
| Scott Thompson | 366.1 |
| Aaron Mullett | 355.5 |
| Jack Ziebell | 354.4 |
Ranked as a ‘mid/forward’ by Champion Data, Harvey is still in the elite of the AFL for metres gained. Only behind Chad Wingard and Dustin Martin in the category, the 362-game veteran sits above the likes of Lewis Jetta, Cyril Rioli and Robbie Gray.
| Player | Metres gained per game | AFL rank for mid/forward |
| Brent Harvey | 382.3 | 3rd |
| Lewis Jetta | 349.8 | 6th |
| Cyril Rioli | 283.6 | 13th |
| Robbie Gray | 238.8 | 17th |
It might be a little surprising to see Scott Thompson so high up at North Melbourne ranks for metres gained. However, when you consider he tends to favour long disposal by foot and averaged more than four rebound 50’s per game, it falls into place.
This passage of play against Brisbane in Round 4 in 2013 sums up his importance in the defensive half.
Although Thompson’s long kick doesn’t directly go to hand, from the time he marks to the fall of the ball, North gains approximately 70 metres.
When total metres gained across the league is sorted by Champion Data’s rank for key defenders, Thompson shoots right up the ladder, second in the AFL. Another point to note is Nathan Grima comes in at sixth, giving North two of the top rebounding key-defenders in the competition.
| Player | Metres gained per game | AFL rank for 'key defender' |
| Michael Johnson | 384.4 | 1st |
| Scott Thompson | 366.1 | 2nd |
| Matt Maguire | 356.6 | 3rd |
| Nathan Grima | 304.9 | 6th |
Metres gained per possession is the second way to look at the statistic. This shows a different set of players at the top for North Melbourne.
Lindsay Thomas, Michael Firrito and Nathan Grima don’t have a lot of the ball during the game – none of the three averaged more than 16 disposals a game during 2013. However as the stats show, each of their possessions gain a lot of territory for North.
| Player | Metres gained per possession |
| Lindsay Thomas | 23.4 |
| Michael Firrito | 20.8 |
| Nathan Grima | 19.2 |
Thomas falls under the ‘general forward’ category for Champion Data, and it’s no surprise his 23.4 rates right up at the top of the league.
He’s fourth in the league in the stat, ahead of Steven Motlop and grand finalists Michael Walters and Hayden Ballantyne.
| Player | Metres gained per possession | AFL rank for 'general forward' |
| Lindsay Thomas | 23.4 | 4th |
| Steven Motlop | 22.4 | 6th |
| Michael Walters | 21.8 | 10th |
| Hayden Ballantyne | 20.1 | 15th |
Perhaps it’s no coincidence that Thomas, Thompson, Wells and Harvey are four of North Melbourne’s most influential players, while being towards the top of the metres gained leaderboards.
