Tom Bugg took out the Demons' post-Christmas 2km time trial, beating Tom McDonald and Alex Neal-Bullen over the line.

McDonald has traditionally been Melbourne's time trial leader, but the key defender-turned-forward had surgery on both his ankles at the end of last season and began his pre-season in rehab.

Neal-Bullen is an excellent endurance runner, and thrives in the repeat running tests at training and his results underline his improvement as one of the Demons' top high half-forwards.

Previous stars: Midfielder Cameron Bruce was regarded for his efforts in endurance-based tests during his 224 games with Melbourne. Former Demon Rohan Bail was also excellent when it came to time trials. - Ben Guthrie