Tom Scully

Tom Scully
Personal information
Full name	Thomas Scully
Date of birth	(1991-05-15) 15 May 1991
Place of birth	Berwick, Victoria
Original team	Dandenong Stingrays
Draft	1st overall, 2009 National Draft (Melbourne)
Height/Weight	181 cm / 78 kg
Position(s)	Midfielder
Club information
Current club	Greater Western Sydney
Number	9
Playing career1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
2010–2011 2012– Total	Melbourne Greater Western Sydney	31 0(6) 40 (15) 71 (21)
1 Playing statistics correct to end of 2013 season.
Career highlights
Number one overall pick in 2009 AFL draft

Thomas "Tom" Scully (born 15 May 1991) is an Australian rules footballer, who plays for the GWS Giants in the Australian Football League (AFL). He previously played for Melbourne.

A star midfielder at junior level, Scully was originally selected by Melbourne with the first overall draft pick of the 2009 AFL Draft. However at the conclusion of his initial 2 year contract with Melbourne he accepted the opportunity to join the newly established GWS Giants in 2012 on a 6 year deal. ^[1] At the commencement of the 2013 season Scully was named as vice captain for the Giants.

Junior career

Originally from Berwick, Scully was first noticed by Dandenong region manager Darren Flanigan when he was 13. Flanigan asserted that Scully was the best talent he had seen come through the Dandenong program in nine years.^[2] Scully played his TAC Cup football for the Dandenong Stingrays, and school football for Haileybury College.^[3] He captained Victorian Metropolitan region in the 2009 AFL National Under 18 Championships^[4] and was named in the Under-18 All Australian team in 2008 and 2009.

Melbourne Football Club

Recruitment

Throughout 2009, Scully was touted as a potential and likely number one draft pick for the AFL Draft.^[2] In the draft, the Melbourne Football Club had both the No. 1 and 2 picks available to it, and used the No. 1 pick (a priority draft pick) to recruit Scully. Scully was presented with the number 31 jersey made famous by club and league legend Ron Barassi.^[5]

Playing career at Melbourne

Scully made his AFL debut in Round 1, 2010, alongside No. 2 pick Jack Trengove.^[6] His breakout individual performance of the season came in Round 4 against Richmond, with 26 disposals for the match including 11 in the third quarter, and he received an AFL Rising Star nomination (and three Brownlow votes) for his Round 7 performance.^[7] Scully finished the season by coming second in the AFL Rising Star, behind Sydney's Daniel Hannebery. He won the Harold Ball Memorial Trophy, for being Melbourne's Best First Year Player, and finished eighth in the Best and Fairest.^[8]

Greater Western Sydney Football Club

Recruitment

There was intense speculation throughout the 2011 AFL season that Scully would move to expansion club Greater Western Sydney at the end of the season. Scully's initial two-year contract with Melbourne would end after the 2011 season, allowing the expansion club to sign Scully without need for a trade. It was announced on 12 September 2011 that he would be moving to the play for the Giants on a six-year contract valued at an estimated total value of $6 million.^[9]

There was controversy surrounding the signing when it was discovered that Scully's father, Phil Scully, had also been offered a job as a recruiting scout at the Giants, with a six-year term of employment coinciding with the period of Scully's playing contract. The AFL ruled that the appointment was legal, but that it was considered as part of the total agreement used to convince Scully to sign with the Giants; as a result, Phil Scully's wages ($680,000 over six years) will be included inside Greater Western Sydney's salary cap.^[10] Scully has stated publicly that he had no knowledge of the offer to his father prior to signing his own deal.^[11] Phil Scully had previously served in a similar role with the Sydney Swans.

Playing career at Greater Western Sydney

Scully played 19 games in his first season with the Giants where he averaged 20.3 disposals while playing a shut down role on some of the AFL’s biggest names. One of Scully’s most impressive performances came against West Coast in Round 3 with 30 disposals and three marks. Scully finished his first season at the club in fourth place in the Kevin Sheedy Medal.

References

External links

• Tom Scully's profile on the official website of the Greater Western Sydney Football Club
• Tom Scully's statistics from AFL Tables
• DemonWiki profile