Noble is the the Premier League's marathon man... with nine English players in top 10 of top-flight's distance covered table



They are the marathon men of the Premier League, the players who put in the hard yards for their side.



Some of them average more than 10km every game, a superb show of stamina in anyone’s book.



And, on the eve of the London Marathon, when 36,000 runners will pound the 26.2 miles around the capital, we can reveal who has been going the furthest for your team.



For supporters of West Ham it will come as little surprise to learn that crowd favourite Mark Noble has covered more ground than any other player in the top flight.

Frontrunner: West Ham's Mark Noble has covered more ground than any other Premier League player Going the extra mile: Liverpool's Jordan Henderson has run just short of 360km this season

TOP TEN DISTANCES COVERED IN 2013/2014 PREMIER LEAGUE

Position Player Distance (m)

1 Mark Noble

38,0927.0 2 Mile Jedinak

36,4319.9 3 Steve Sidwell

36,1070.8 4 Jordan Henderson

35,9080.0 5 Adam Lallana

35,8094.8 6 Jake Livermore

35,1434.8 7

Steven Caulker

33,8766.2 8 Jay Rodriguez

33,2569.6 9 Tom Huddlestone

33,2352.6 10 Ryan Shawcross

33,0012.1 Data courtesy of the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index, Official Player Rating Index of the Barclays Premier League

Indeed, the 380,927 metres which he has galloped is some 16km more than his nearest running rival.



Noble’s effort is the equivalent of having already completed NINE London Marathons this season.



Or, in footballing terms, having set off from Upton Park and not stopped until he got to Middlesbrough’s Riverside Stadium on Teesside.



There have been calls in some parts for Noble to be recognised with an international call-up for his performances this term.



While unlikely, were that to happen he would be joining an England squad containing comrades of equally admirable work ethic.



Within the top five in the distance-covered table are two midfielders surely headed for Brazil – Liverpool’s Jordan Henderson and Southampton’s Adam Lallana. Both have run just shy of 360km this campaign - that is eight-and-a-half marathons.

That the pair marry craft to their graft is the reason they’re set for the World Cup and, in the energy-sapping surrounds of Manaus for the opener against Italy, Roy Hodgson could well draw upon their reserves of stamina.



But there is a homegrown theme running through our research. In fact, of the top 10, nine are English and seven of those have been capped by their country.



Wayne Rooney, meanwhile, tops the charts at Manchester United with 284km, while just outside the top 10 are Chelsea’s Eden Hazard (316km) and Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure (309km).



Hard yards: Southampton's Adam Lallana is fifth in the distance covered table ahead of the World Cup

Club best: Wayne Rooney is top of the charts at Manchester United after running 284km

Work horse: Some may be surprised to hear that Olivier Giroud has done the most running for Arsenal

Somewhat surprisingly, Arsenal’s running man is Olivier Giroud, the forward having got through 307km’s worth of work for his side.

As for the one foreign player who resides in the leading 10 players, that is Crystal Palace’s Australia midfielder Mile Jedinak, whose 364km is bettered only by Noble.

