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Opinion
Well, is he?
It’s a difficult question to answer, especially considering midfielders have dominated the current game. I can say he’s been my favourite player to watch.
Gary Ablett Jr, Chris Judd, Dustin Martin and countless other midfielders have definitely been game-changing in their own right. However, there’s no other player I’d rather see in full flight than Lance Franklin.
The 2007 elimination final was when Franklin fully announced himself to the AFL world. In his first final, having already kicked six goals, he took a mark in the dying seconds, pressed up against the boundary from just inside 50. He went back and slotted it.
You could tell he had the self-confidence and that arrogance; he was good and he knew it.
2008 arrives and he set the competition on fire. The 102 goals in a home-and-away season was remarkable. Crazy to think how the game’s changed – after Round 11 in 2008, Franklin had 59 goals, which would have won the Coleman Medal last season.
However, I always felt it was more than just stats watching Buddy. He would score the most unbelievable goals and look so nonchalant doing it. In the 2008 qualifying final, he kicked eight goals. Some of the goals were outstanding. Hawthorn ended up winning the 2008 premiership against one of the best teams ever.
Franklin continued to outdo himself in generating memorable highlights. The two running goals against Essendon at a sodden MCG is testament to that. He kicked the first one, where he bounced it through. You thought that was pretty good but a short time later he did one better.
Gathering the ball at the interchange benches he ran away from a tiring Cale Hooker. He took three bounces, actually ran closer to the boundary line and slotted it through on the full this time.
Frankin hasn’t always been able to have success on the biggest stage of grand final day. He’s played in five grand finals, three for Hawthorn and two for Sydney.
(Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Out of those five, he’s only been victorious in two of them. The 2012 grand final, where he played for Hawthorn against Sydney, was his best individual performance. He had 23 disposals and eight shots at goal – it was inaccuracy that let him and his side down. Three goals, four behinds and one out on the full. He won the premiership with Hawthorn the following year in a more team-oriented role.
The following year, he made the move interstate to Sydney. He hit the ground running, winning the Coleman Medal with 67 goals.
The first game that I vividly remember him playing for Sydney was against a resurgent Port Adelaide at the SCG. It encapsulated Franklin’s career in one game. He started off slowly, kicking four behinds, before he registered his first goal deep into the third quarter. He then quickly got another, extending the Swans’ lead to 21 points.
However, Port Adelaide had grown a reputation for being fast finishers.
The game was in the balance. Franklin stood up again, kicking three last-quarter goals, all from outside 50. That game was seven years ago.
Fast forward to the current day, and he is still doing it. Getting fans off their seats to celebrate the unique talents this man possesses.
He missed the entire 2020 season. He bounced back in 2021, kicking 51 goals.
The reason I ask the question? Perhaps it’s because he probably has the best individual highlights package of any player.
The fact is, he is closing in on the 1000-goal milestone, which only five players have ever done and nobody will do again.
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