Tom Scully says he feels ‘vindicated’ after years of criticism after move to GWS Giants

GWS Giants star Tom Scully says he feels ‘vindicated’ after years of criticism over his controversial move from Melbourne on a big-money contract.

Tom Scully in action for GWS against Gold Coast.

THE AFL’s punching bag has finally out-run his critics.

Tom Scully made the All-Australian 40-man squad this week and has developed into the AFL’s most feared elite runner.

TOBY GREENE: BAD BOY TO GIANT ALL-AUSTRALIAN BOLTER

DERBY FINAL: SWANS’ SLEDGE WARNING FOR WHITFIELD

TRADE WINDS: VIC CLUBS TO LAUNCH GWS TRADE RAID

The respect has been a long time coming, and Scully is relishing having the last word on how his career will be rated.

I feel well and truly vindicated ... I’ve never had any regrets.

Tom Scully

When Scully left Melbourne in 2011 on a deal worth $5 million over five years he was hammered by Demons fans for ditching them for the cash.

The noise didn’t quieten in the first few years as Scully and the Giants struggled to make an impact, finishing with nine wins from 66 games in their first three seasons.

In many ways Scully’s footballing fortunes have followed his club’s steady rise. He is now clearly one of the Giants’ most valuable players and the club has cracked the top four.

Tom Scully is tackled by Crows Kyle Hartigan and Eddie Betts.

“I feel well and truly vindicated,” Scully told The Saturday Telegraph.

“I’ve never had any regrets. I mean that 100 per cent. As a club we’ve earned the respect of the rest of the competition. I always had an optimistic view of where we were heading. I’ve always been confident we would be able to get to this stage.”

Scully’s success has been driven by a single-minded attitude and an aerobic base few in the AFL can compete with.

The elimination of the substitute and the reduction in the number of interchanges has suited Scully’s game.

He stays on the ground longer than any other midfielder in the competition and doesn’t let up. As a schoolboy he won the Victorian High Schools cross country championship twice on nothing other than football training.

“It was something I did at school mainly to get out of class,” Scully said.

“I didn’t do any extra training for it, football was always my No.1 sport and I was always passionate about that and the running was just a bit of extra fitness and I enjoyed it. I ran a bit of 800 and 1500 at school as well.”

Scully recently signed a five-year extension for $2 million less than he was paid in his first five years at the club.

When he secured his first deal in 2011 his father Phil was also signed on for six years as a GWS recruiter.

The AFL deemed his father’s salary as an attraction to draw Tom to the club and included all of Phil’s $680,000 over six years in the Giants’ salary cap.

The club has requested the AFL exclude any extension of Phil’s contract at GWS in the salary cap going forward.

They argue he is a recruiter of genuine ability and Tom has re-signed with the club independently of his father’s agreement.

Tom revealed Phil played a major role in the drafting of teammate Toby Greene in 2011.

“He was very big on Toby and pushed for him,” Scully said.

“He said he hoped we got Toby because he watched him really closely and realised he was a natural footballer. He may not have been the prettiest but he was very effective.”

Part of the AFL’s reasoning for including Phil’s contract in the salary cap was he wasn’t regarded in the industry as a legitimate recruiting talent.

“I’ve got a biased view of it but I think he’s got a very good football knowledge,” Scully said.

“He has a great feel for the game. He has a genuine passion for finding talent and picking guys out. Even before I was in the system he was always very interested in player’s development. Working part time under Kinnear Beatson at the Swans he got a taste for it and he was learning under the best.”

Like another 15 of his teammates Scully will be playing his first final against the Swans next Saturday.

“It’s incredibly exciting to be playing in the finals,” Scully said.

“It’s been a long time coming but I came up here with a long-term view. I knew it would take time but to get here now and its fantastic to be in a position where we’re loving every minute of it, not long ago we couldn’t wait to get away from footy at this time of the year.”