In a matter of weeks, Lance Franklin will announce where he will play in 2014 – whether he’ll stay loyal to Hawthorn or accept a lucrative offer from the GWS Giants.
It’s no secret the Giants are struggling to perform, finishing their second season in 18th spot with only one win against the flailing Demons to their name.
Will Franklin change that? No. It is not a star forward that the Giants lack.
The Giants already boast one of the most exciting young prospects in the game in Jeremy Cameron.
Cameron, third in the 2013 Coleman medal race, kicked more goals than Franklin, had a better accuracy with shots on goal, took 30 more marks in general play than Franklin and attained a disposal efficiency percentage 0.7% behind Franklin’s in just his second year of AFL football.
His impressive year also included 37 “1%ers” – one more than Franklin this season – showing that Cameron isn’t just focused on scoring a goal but on getting the Giants a win.
Cameron has managed all this with the delivery of the young, inexperienced Giants midfield.
Cameron stands at 194cm tall, 2cm shorter than Franklin. But if it was height in the forward line the Giants were after, then surely they would be satisfied at the prospect of No. 1 draft pick Jonathan Patton recovering from a knee reconstruction.
Patton stands at 197cm tall and in his few games of AFL football has shown flashes of brilliance both in the air and on the ground.
The combination of the two is a frightening prospect in years to come, however the Giants aren’t done there.
Sitting in their pocket is the number one pick in the 2013 draft – almost certain to be Tom Boyd. Standing at 199cm and 102kg as an 18 year old, Boyd is touted to be the best young forward going around, with experts putting him above Cameron, Patton, Danniher and Hogan in ability.
Although the Giants have made it clear the No. 1 pick is up for grabs if a worthy offer isn’t put to them on the trade table, they won’t part with it – and they certainly won’t let the opportunity to grab Boyd go.
So with all this future forward fire power, why chase Franklin?
Would the money offered to Franklin not be better spent securing talented mature midfielders, ruckmen and defenders?
Would the money offered to Franklin, given the rumoured deal is for six years, not be better allocated in the future to keeping Cameron and Patton together at the Giants?
Or the likes of early draft picks like Whitfield, Shiel and Coniglio at the Giants once they mature?
Is winning more games in 2014 and beyond really a priority for the Giants or is branding their focus?
It’s no secret that Franklin has a strong brand and powerful marketability that the AFL hopes to draw upon if he moves north. But it’s a sad day for the AFL when teams make recruiting decisions based on marketing instead of team deficiency.
Daryl Adair
Guest
Allan, no-one said "massive crowds" in this blog. But presumably crowds bigger than the 10k or so that went to Greater Western Sydney games on average this year. Winning games would, I'm fairly certain, help that cause. It's hard to watch a team getting belted nearly every week. As for your claim that the "population has been claimed by other codes". Well, let's look at the past few months: neither the Eels nor the Panthers seem to have set the world on fire in terms of crowds. And the Waratahs have been rather sluggish too - not that they play much out of ANZ Stadium. After the winter season there will be the A-League, within which the Wanderers had a great first season. All good. But the winter and summer sports aren't in competition. It's like saying cricket is up against rugby league. At the end of the way, what's important for the West (where I live) is for multiple sport teams in various codes/games to do well and attract enough punters to be sustainable. If the winter-based clubs can actually be competitive on the field that would be a bonus - and start to draw back some disaffected fans who are sick of blowouts.
Allan
Guest
All this talk about being only a few wins away from massive crowds is absurd. The population has been claimed by other codes.
Sports Candy
Roar Pro
Wouldn't it be great if the Giants could win the AFL flag this year. Don't ever say never.
Daryl Adair
Guest
Mumford would be a huge signing, in every sense of the word. Giles has worked hard, but without support. Dustin Martin would be handy in the midfield, but only if he pulls his head in and also gets much, much fitter. The team really needs some tall defenders; they're hard to find. Finally, while many pundits are saying that Buddy Franklin wouldn't add much to the team I disagree fundamentally. This guy would soak up two defenders and could play centre half forward, leaving Cameron to roam and Patton to lead from the goal square. Serious scoring power. But what is needed is more ball IN THE FORWARD LINE, which means rebounding defence and a more mature on-ball brigade.
Ian Whitchurch
Guest
Yep, Mumford is a much better signing than Buddy. Bluntly, it's Jezza's forward line, and Buddy will only take up his space. I can see an argument for Daisy, or Martin, and theres a couple of defenders I think we should make offers on. But Buddy ? Not with Cameron, Patton and Boyd.
Cat
Roar Guru
Daisy is no where near the class of an Ablett or Franklin and now he has a bum wheel.
Christo the Daddyo
Guest
As a Swans fan I would hate to lose Mumford, but he would be a great signing for the Giants.
Christo the Daddyo
Guest
I can't see Franklin providing the same level of on-field contribution as Ablett. Mostly because Ablett is a class above everyone else in the AFL, but also because the Giants already have plenty of talent in their forward line. Ruckmen and defenders with the right level of experience and ability will be much more valuable than Franklin.
GoGWS
Roar Guru
I agree in general - they are let down in the ruck and defensively more than forward. Giles does try his best, and he has improved, but he's just not up there with the better big men (and this is why h struggled at Port). And in defense Davis needs help- he does OK (when he's not injured) but they need more hardness and experience in defence. Having said all of that, I reckon if Buddy is on the table then Giants should grab him.... I'm a regular at Skoda so I'd like to see Buddy out there with his bag of tricks...
Epiquin
Guest
It's good to see some people talking sense about Lance Franklin. I've read in these forums before people saying that he will give GWS a much bigger profile but I can't see it happening. A bigger profile with who? Are they talking about converting the unconverted? If so then it is not likely to work as no one in Sydney really knows who he is. Are they trying to steal fans from other clubs? Once again, this would also fail, as those clubs have superstars of their own. I heard the same thing said about Sheedy: that he boosted the games profile in Sydney with his controversy. But in reality, his 'controversies' barely even made the Sydney news and the only time I've ever heard of them was when Victorians talk about them. I wouldn't rely on a marquee signing to build the giants brand. It didn't work with Sheedy or Folau.
Lee
Roar Rookie
Personally I think trading n0.1 for Sandilands plus A.N.other would be a win for GWS and Freo
andyincanberra
Guest
LOL - very funny. BUT, if you're looking to increase exposure, get Shaun Hampson up at GWS, his missus has a higher profile in Sydney (her hometown) than Buddy ever would. Much cheaper too.
Samual Johnson
Guest
As a Carlton man, I would not be keen on Franklin. I think he is over-rated. We had the big super star full forward, but it did not get us a flag. There were plenty of memorable, and not so memorable moments in that period also. Also with Buddy he has his off field issues. There was something not playing related that occured last season that led to him being unavailable for selection for a while and not injury related which is a warning sign. Pass on Franklin, but I would be keen on a deal to get either Cameron, Patton or this first pick in the draft bloke. Would you like to take Shaun Hampson, Jarrad Waite, Heath Scotland and Aaron Joseph for one of those?
hawker
Guest
He's not the worth the money they are offering (i don't think there is a footballer that is) and he's certainly not worth it playing on the wing...
andyincanberra
Guest
Cameron should by rights be their marquee player, he's done all the right things so far, leave Buddy at Hawthorn. I predict Cameron will be the next AFL player to have a 100 goal season. While I'm at it, Giants, please DON'T recruit Dusty Martin, he's bad news and will do nothing to promote a healthy culture within the club.
Mango Jack
Guest
There's nothing in this for GWS. Buddy will collect a fortune, sit back and let a hungry young Cameron do all the hard yards, occasionally slotting one of his trademark boundary line goals. As for GWS profile, forget it. Until and unless the giants start winning, their status in Western Sydney will not change. If, as expected, Cameron and co improve, they will start winning games anyway, then he and Scully et al will become the local heroes. It would be a sad waste of GWS money if they spent big on Buddy. Better of snaring Mumford.
Maca
Guest
I misread your first sentence Samual and thought YES - there's the answer to all this! I was reading the Roos article, and why not send Buddy to Melbourne to help kick-start their rebuild? And of course you throw up another viable option in your last sentence - would Carlton be interested in Buddy?
Samual Johnson
Guest
Franklin will be going according to the popular press in Melbourne. Most Hawthorn folks are resigned to that fate. If the Hawks get beaten AGAIN by Geelog Friday night, it might only attract a brief sigh from Hawk fans. Buddy cannot mark above his head and has one of the worst kicks I have ever seen. Good luck to the Giants grabbing him, I doubt anyone up in Sin City would know him about as much anyone in Melbourne would know about pretty much any NRL player outside of a couple of well known Storm blokes. If Franklin goes there, Patton will be not sticking around long. They already have Cameron there and if I was a Giants player I would not be pleased as it would dry up the opportunities. They will also get the first draft pick, who will be that big forward as well. Patton could then be freed up to return to a Melbourne club. I believe Carlton is keen on a big forward.
Maca
Guest
Talk on the street is a bloke called Daisy is kinda handy in the mids, and is looking for a top garden to blossom in.
Penster
Guest
Haha I hope not. As much as I'd hate to see him leave Hawthorn, he'd be good for the game at GWS as a so called "marquee player" like Abblett is. GWS and the AFL would be shelling out a lot of cash, I hope Buddy's up for the responsibility it would entail if he chooses to head north.