When Greater Western Sydney decided to build its list by stockpiling the best young players in the country across several drafts it would only be a matter of time before that talent made its mark.

When they did the improvement would be dramatic, and not incremental like other clubs, due to the generosity of the draft concessions they were given.

And so it has proven for the league's newest club, which has made the massive leap from also-ran to genuine contender this year.

There are at least six players in the midst of breakout seasons. They include the once maligned Tom Scully, a pair of No.2 draft picks Stephen Coniglio and Josh Kelly, another top-end talent in Nick Haynes, access pick Nathan Wilson and rookie Zac Williams.

Significantly, all, apart from the sublimely talented Kelly, were part of the Giants' inaugural campaign in 2012 and now reaping the rewards of five preseasons, which those in the know say is how long it takes to turn a boy into a proper AFL footballer.

If a club has one player in a career-best year the difference can be negligible; two, and there should be a discernible difference on the ladder. But when there's this many the impact is, ahem, giant.

To put this into perspective, the Swans' 2012 flag came in a season where Josh Kennedy, Kieren Jack, Lewis Jetta and Ted Richards took their game to the elite level. Dan Hannebery was not far off it. Geelong's rise from also ran to powerhouse in 2007 came in a year where they had seven first-time All Australians.

Of the Giants' six, Coniglio, Scully and Williams all have claims for team of the year honours; so too Heath Shaw and Callan Ward, who has consolidated on a career-best 2015.

The highlight has arguably been Coniglio, who often misses the plaudits that go the way of his midfield comrades Dylan Shiel and Ward. Inside the Giants, however, Coniglio, who is often given the task of minding the opposition's best midfielder and gets the job done more often than not, is regarded as the "heartbeat" of the club.

"He's very quietly spoken but he's a thinker, he's smart, he loves the footy club," the Giants' football boss Wayne Campbell says.

"He's absolutely invested in the GWS Giants; people see that and that's why they follow him."

Scully is another who is more highly valued inside the club than out – and not just because of his high wage. The Giants felt he copped an unfair whack in the club's early days as his hard running was often used as a defensive tool rather than an attacking weapon. With a better team around him, his value is becoming more apparent.

"He's probably playing a bit better but he's certainly had a very high standard of play over a long period of time," Campbell says.

"When you get beaten you don't get the recognition that you deserve. He's getting on the end of a few more at the end of the game because we're winning a bit more."

Campbell says the talent available to the Giants has helped but paid tribute to the system set up before his arrival this year.

"It's difficult to win without talent but you can also not win with talent if you haven't got a program in place," Campbell says.

"I've been impressed with the facility, coaching and conditioning program. If you put some talent in with that, which we've got some, your performance should improve.

"If you look at the list across the board I don't think there'd be too many in the list of 42 or 44 that haven't improved. That's generally a sign of good coaching, good systems, good conditioning."