If you asked people in Melbourne which player had most contested marks in Round 6 of the AFL premiership last weekend, how many would know?

Probably none. Even if you offered them 20 guesses, and threw in an extra clue that he’s become one of the competition’s most effective medium-sized forwards.

Because the unlikely ‘winner’ in a statistical category that is traditionally the domain of the big power forwards and key defenders it was an unheralded 183cm utility player who has spent most of his 116 AFL games in just about any other role.

The #1 contested mark among 414 players in Round 6 was the SUNS’ Ben Long.

He had five – one more than Richmond’s Nick Vlastuin and Noah Balta, West Coast’s Matt Flynn, and St Kilda’s Anthony Caminiti, and two more than Brisbane’s Harris Andrews, Hawthorn’s Tom Barrass and Jack Gunston, GWS’ Sam Taylor, Sydney’s Hayden McLean, Port’s Esava Ratugolea and Geelong’s Shannon Neale.

It is an equal career-best for the 27-year-old, and another credit in what has been a stunning mid-career transformation for the Darwin-born Long, who was originally drafted by St Kilda with their first pick in the 2016 AFL National Draft at #26 overall.

He also pulled down five contested marks to go with a career-high 27 possessions and two Brownlow Medal votes in his 79^th and last game for St Kilda in Round 23, 2022 – on his 25^th birthday.

He’d played 4-10-16-15-15-19 games year-by-year with the Saints from 2017-22 without really consolidating his spot or a defined role, and after he was dropped four times and started as the medical substitute eight times in 2022-23 he sought a fresh start and was traded to the SUNS with a future fourth-round pick for pick #32 in the 2022 National Draft.

Recruited primarily as a defender, he was deployed exclusively in the back half for the SUNS in 2023, but after being selected for just two of the last eight games of his first season in red and yellow the 2024 AFL Guide forecast Long “will face stiffer competition to play regular senior footy this season”.

When he played only once in the first seven rounds of 2024 the knockers may have been thinking the Guide was right, but it all turned around after he was recalled for QClash #26 in Round 8 at the Gabba.

Having kicked 11 goals in three VFL games prior to his AFL return, he kicked his first SUNS goal that night after starting as the substitute, and hasn’t missed a game since. And he’s rarely ventured backwards of centre.

Since his return in Round 8 last year, Long has kicked 39 goals.

That’s more than all but 14 players across the entire competition. And it’s a star-studded list ahead of him, headed by GWS’ 2024 Coleman Medallist Jesse Hogan (70), Geelong’s 2019 Coleman Medallist and four-time All-Australian Jeremy Cameron (58), SUNS teammate Ben King (56), Adelaide’s Darcy Fogarty (51) and Port Adelaide’s Mitch Georgiades (51).

And he’s within 10 goals of GWS’ All-Australian captain Toby Greene (49), Fremantle’s Josh Treacy (49), North’s 2023 All-Australian Nick Larkey (47), retired Brisbane premiership hero Joe Daniher (46), Carlton’s 2022-23 Coleman Medallist Charlie Curnow (44), Geelong’s 2022 All-Australian Tyson Stengle (41), Bulldogs wunderkind Sam Darcy (41), St Kilda’s Jack Higgins (41) and Sydney’s Will Hayward (41).

He’s kicked a career-high four goals twice during his transformation from all-purpose defence to dangerous and combating medium-sized forward, and with 13 goals in five games this year is the SUNS’ #2 goal-kicker five behind joint Coleman Medal leader King (18).

This is after he charged up the leaderboard in the SUNS’ club championship vote count in the back half of 2024, finishing 8^th overall after sitting behind 29 players a third of the way through the count.

Now with 37 games for the club under his belt, Long is on track this year to become the first SUN to play 50 games in jumper #22. He has Izak Rankine (48) and Tom Nicholls (45) ahead of him.

Long was one of few statistical standouts for the SUNS in Saturday night’s 11-point loss to Richmond at Marvel Stadium.

Touk Miller had a season-high 33 possessions to go with seven clearances and nine score involvements to earn three votes in the AFL Coaches Association Player of the Year Award.

Matt Rowell also earned three votes for his 29 possessions, seven clearances and seven score involvements, while John Noble picked up one vote for 27 possessions, including a team-high 12 intercept possessions, and 502metres gained – second only to Noah Anderson’s 802m from 32 possessions, nine clearances and seven score involvements.