Despite what they say, this Saturday will be very much all about Buddy

Jezza’s speccy, Leo Barry’s mark, Michael Long’s goal. They are moments of brilliance that we all know and love.

Like pop stars who have become so famous that they only need one name, these passages of play need only a proper noun and a verb to be instantly recognisable to footy fans everywhere.

No further explanation is necessary.

In an instant we can activate the highlight reel buried deep within our brains and relive these spectacular feats as if we had seen them take place yesterday. They are ingrained on us, a part of us, and we never tire of watching, talking or dreaming about them.

They are moments made famous, not just because of their spectacular nature, but because they took place on football’s biggest stage – the MCG on grand final day.

This Saturday the stage will be made for Lance ‘Buddy’ Franklin. Like a true showman he loves a crowd. The bigger the better. And he knows how to play them. Watch how they’ll be whipped into a frenzy should the big fella launch into one of his bouncing runs and snag a trade mark goal from the boundary. He only needs to do that a couple of times and the Norm Smith is his.

Franklin has had a remarkable season. He may have kicked 100 goals for Hawthorn in its premiership year of 2008, but his 75 goals this year from 21 games, and his growing confidence as a Sydney player, has the big fella pretty close to career best form.

But more than that, it is the way he has teamed with his new mates that has most impressed. Without losing any of his star appeal, he has managed to fit into Sydney’s forward set up with barely a hiccup. He forms a formidable goal kicking duo with man mountain Kurt Tippett, a combination that many thought would never be able to smoothly jell.

But jell they have. Rather than getting in each other’s way, the pair work in tandem, rotating through the key forward positions and rarely meeting for the same contested ball. Nine goals between them last week showed just how effective they can be.

Franklin is made for this game. In a sport that requires its participants to possess all the attributes of a decathlete, as well as being tough enough to absorb 120 minutes of full physical punishment, Franklin ticks all the boxes.

In a way he is the Usain Bolt of Australian football. Tall, fast, adored by fans and grudgingly admired by those who refuse to fall under his spell, Franklin possesses a rare quality. He brings people to the game, draws them through the gates and rarely disappoints.

It is a gift that places him in elite company. The history books tell us that people would change ends at the completion of each quarter to follow Essendon’s champion full forward, John Coleman, while in more recent memory people would watch Geelong play just so they could see the great Gary Ablett senior perform his miracles.

In a sport littered with champions, few have had such an influence on the game, but Franklin is fast becoming one of them. Those who doubt his influence are living in denial. Only a corps wouldn’t feel a quickening of the pulse when Buddy hits the boil.

Franklin has helped lift the Swans back into the grand final after a one year absence. There is little doubt that his x-factor was the missing ingredient that Sydney required to once again rule the AFL landscape. They paid for it of course, but the dividends are looking pretty good.

Franklin has now played more than 200 games and is beginning to close in on 700 goals. Should the Swans win on Saturday he will become a three-time premiership player. It will be his fourth grand final.

It may also be the one in which he is most dominant.