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Hawthorn star Lance Franklin reached his AFL “ton” tonight as the Hawks tuned up for the finals with a 78-point whipping of Carlton at Telstra Dome.
Blues spearhead Brendan Fevola nearly made this a tale of two tons with seven goals in the second half, but despite some desperate efforts he went one short of also reaching 100 goals for the season.
Franklin’s second goal at 25 minutes into the first quarter made him the first player since 1998 to kick 100 goals in the regular season as the Hawks won 24.15 (159) to 12.9 (81).
Excitement grew in the last term as Fevola closed on the century.
He kicked his seventh at 27 minutes, but then gave away a free and with only seconds remaining, four Hawks defenders stopped him going for a mark.
Franklin, arguably the game’s hottest star, finished with 4.5 for the game and 102 for the home-and-away season.
The Hawks will now meet the Western Bulldogs next weekend in a qualifying final.
With the game decided by halftime, the only remaining interest was whether Fevola could also reach triple figures.
Fevola started the night on 92 and if he had reached 100, it would have been the first time in AFL history that two players had passed the milestone in the same game.
Fevola’s first-half inaccuracy – four shots for two behinds, one out on the full and one shank that failed to make the distance – cost him.
He finished with 7.3 for the night and was a dejected figure at the final siren.
Team-mates were clearly trying to deliver the ball to Fevola in the final quarter.
Blues fans could not remember Fevola chasing defenders as hard as the pressure he put on Hawks opponents late in the game.
While the game had no bearing on the top eight, the anticipation surrounding “Buddy” Franklin and Fevola meant it attracted more than 49,000 fans.
Franklin’s 100 milestone sparked chaotic scenes as thousands of fans ran onto the ground, ignoring pre-match threats of fines and evictions.
Franklin and several other team-mates were quickly taken from the field, while other Carlton and Hawthorn players huddled in the midfield.
Play was held up for eight minutes until the fans left the field.
There were many more security staff than usual, but there appeared to be no arrests.
The game finally resumed when Franklin emerged from the southern race, accompanied by another ovation.
Several security staff ran onto the field with him in case more fans tried to congratulate Franklin, but the game went ahead without further incident.
Tony Lockett, the AFL’s all-time leading goalkicker, was the last player to kick 100 in the regular season.
Franklin, 21, also became the first Hawk to reach the milestone since Jason Dunstall in 1996.
While play was stopped, fans held up banners saying “Buddylenko – You Beauty” – in reference to Carlton great Alex Jesaulenko – and “Lance ‘Buddy’ Franklin – Coleman Medal 2008”.
Franklin is set to win his first Coleman Medal as the league’s top goalkicker for the season.
AFL players to have kicked 100 goals in home and away season in past 20 years:
1988: Jason Dunstall (Hawthorn) 124
1989: Jason Dunstall (Hawthorn) 128
1992: Jason Dunstall (Hawthorn) 139
1993: Jason Dunstall (Hawthorn) 117, Tony Modra (Adelaide) 119, Gary Ablett Sr (Geelong) 124
1994: Gary Ablett Sr (Geelong) 113
1995: Gary Ablett Sr (Geelong) 118
1996: Tony Lockett (Sydney) 114, Jason Dunstall (Hawthorn) 101
1998: Tony Lockett (Sydney) 107
2008: Lance Franklin (Hawthorn) 102Hawthorn players to have kicked 100 goals in a season:
Peter Hudson – 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1977
Jason Dunstall – 1988, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996
Lance Franklin – 2008
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