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Opinion
There are some articles that are almost too sad to write.
They come with a heavy heart and no sense of joy or happiness. There’s no sense of schadenfreude or glee that sometimes comes with writing about a sport star’s downfall.
No, this is a lament. It’s a call to Lance Franklin, the great champion, the provider of wonderful moments of awe inspiring, jaw-gaping brilliance, to call time on his career.
I write as an unabashed fanboy, fanman actually, of over 60 years of age. I’ve loved his work even before he came to the Swans, but over 10 years I’ve had the pleasure of seeing him first hand. It was a great investment, repaid many times over, to bring him to Sydney. There’s been no premiership, it’s true, but three Grand Finals, countless bums on seats and dollars in the till, vast media coverage – these are great returns.
That’s all without even mentioning that night of the 1000 goals just 12 months ago, an unforgettable experience that went beyond sport and became a moment of transcendent, unspeakable joy in scenes of celebration.
Lance Franklin of the Swans celebrates kicking his 1000th AFL goal. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
Which is why I felt so sad at the SCG against Port Adelaide last night. I watched Lance trying hard but not having an impact. He couldn’t get near the ball when it came in the air and he had to give away free kicks to stop his opponents sweeping the ball away without hindrance.
The best you could say is that he gave a contest and brought the ball to ground a number of times, but that’s a journeyman player’s return, not Lance Franklin, greatest forward in the game.
Seeing him pass off a possible shot at goal on the 50m line then shank a straightforward kick on the three-quarter time siren, it was a hard watch.
Truth be told, it’s not an isolated tough game. Against Melbourne last week it was twice clear that he could no longer kick goals from 50m, and now when the ball hits the ground he seems to have lost that ability to break tackles and set himself for a shot on goal.
He draws the ball still, twice as much as any other Swans forward 50 target, but without the returns. It’s no coincidence that the Swans could have 22 more inside 50s than Port Adelaide and end up losing; it’s not just about bad delivery or kicking high balls to a contest.
There’s no obvious replacement who can kick bags of goals repeatedly – how could anyone replace the greatest forward in recent history? No one knows whether Joel Amartey and Logan McDonald will be good enough to take the Swans to a flag – the jury’s still out on that, with one romp against an undermanned Hawthorn not enough evidence to go on. But they have to be handed the keys to the forward line.
Could Bud play up the ground, as David King and others have suggested? He’s a great field kick, true, but on the evidence of this year it’s debatable whether he has the pace to be a winner there.
Which brings me back to the sad thought, that it’s time to let go.
They say you should never write off a champion. True, but for all there comes a time.
We are seeing it with David Warner in cricket, and now it seems with the Bud. Perhaps Lance’s 1000 goals night was the equivalent of David Warner’s 200 at the MCG, a last grand hurrah that reminds us of their long-term greatness, but a moment destined to be never repeated.
Both have played on since, as is their right as champions, but as a fan who wants to remember the great times, it’s time to say goodbye.
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