Paul Roos places Sydney ruckman Mike Pyke in All-Australian contention

THE amazing AFL adventure of Canada's Mike Pyke continues, with Paul Roos declaring him frontrunner for All-Australian ruck selection.

Mike Pyke

THE amazing AFL adventure of Canada's Mike Pyke continues, with Paul Roos declaring him frontrunner for All-Australian ruck selection.

Pyke was again among Sydney's best in their 44-point win over Essendon and has picked up where he left off as one of the best players in last year's grand final.

Pyke's 26 contested marks has him No.1 in the AFL ahead of superstars Travis Cloke and Nick Riewoldt.

With 263 hitouts, he is placed fourth in the entire competition, while his 12 goals put him second among goal-scoring ruckmen.

"They're the sort of stats which stack up and make a case for All Australian ruckman," Roos said.

"If you look at his record and ask what do you want from a ruckman? it's really impressive.

"He's a dangerous marking forward target who can kick goals.

"To be the leading contested mark in the competition above guys like Travis Cloke is amazing."

His form has also forced Roos to re-think the conundrum of whether to play all three big men -- Pyke, Shane Mumford and Kurt Tippett -- in the same team when Kurt Tippett becomes available in three weeks.

"I probably would have said no (to all three playing) a couple of weeks ago," Roos said.

"It (playing all three big men) allows the Swans to be able to play Tippett straight away with Mumford and Pyke playing well.

"With Tippett coming in with no games under his belt he probably won't be able to play that forward second ruck role because he won't have the match fitness to do it.

"Without Lewis Roberts-Thomson and Sam Reid playing at the moment it allows you to release Adam Goodes into the midfield as well.

"Longer term maybe not, shorter term maybe yes it does allow you to bring Tippett in straight away rather than play him in the seconds."

The man who will have the final say on the debate, John Longmire, is warming to the prospect of seeing all three talls in the same side.

"It's not just about the height, it's the players' ability to make an impact when it's on the ground," Longmire said.

"As long as the big blokes are mobile and agile. They are all OK at ground level -- that's an asset for us."

The Swans coach attributes Pyke's continued development to his ability to listen and follow the instructions of ruck coach Stephen Taubert.

"His improvement has gone along the lines since he arrived he just keeps going upward and getting better," Longmire said.

"He does the basics really well, which is the cornerstone of his game, and he's been able to develop his contested marking and his goal kicking when he goes forward."

The improvement in Pyke since his recruitment in 2009 has been so dramatic opposition coaches are being forced to pay him respect which wasn't there in his early days at the Swans.

"Coaches need to pay attention to him, three or four years ago he was seen as a player who could be exploited," Roos said.

"Players could run off him, run him up and back, take him forward and you (could) out-mark him.

"It's been an extraordinary story."