Lance Franklin’s march to 1000 goals has captured the admiration and attention of AFL fans but the superstar has banished thoughts of his most meaningful milestone yet, which could come as early as Saturday.
Franklin booted six goals in Sydney’s demolition of Gold Coast in the final round of the season, bringing his career tally to 992.
Multiple soft-tissue injuries in recent years raised questions about whether the four-time Coleman medallist would see out his nine-year contract that expires at the end of 2022, let alone become the sixth man in VFL/AFL history to kick 1000 goals.
But Franklin, who was restricted to a sole AFL game in that horror 21-month stretch, has played 17 matches this season to help fuel the Swans’ return to finals.
The 34-year-old says his focus is purely on extending Sydney’s season deep into September, rather than winding the clock back with an eight-goal bag in their elimination final against GWS.
“Nah, absolutely not,” Franklin said, when asked if the milestone was at the back of his mind.
“There’s a lot of talk about it.
“But for me it’s about winning. My focus is on this final.
“Missing a full year of football (in 2020) was disappointing. That hunger has always been there to get back and play consistent football.
“I’ve been able to do that this season. I’m slowly building, I really want to have a good finals series.”
Franklin has lost two grand finals since departing Hawthorn after the 2013 season, when he celebrated his second premiership with the Hawks.
The legend has played a behind-the-scenes role in the Swans’ recent rapid rebuild, mentoring their young forward line.
Franklin entered last year’s hub to help impart some wisdom to inexperienced teammates, even though he was in recovery mode and had accepted there was zero prospect of playing in 2020.
Sydney could have up to 10 players taking part in their first final in Launceston.
Franklin, who will feature in his 25th final when the Swans tackle the Giants, will offer some simple advice to those inexperienced teammates.
“Nothing really should change with the way you go about it and the way you play,” Franklin said.
“Keep it nice and simple.
“Prepare really well, go out there and have fun. The most important thing is just enjoy what you do, it should take care of itself if you’re able to do that.
“The last couple of years, we’ve been really building. We’ve been playing a lot of young kids who have been given opportunities and grabbed that.”
AAP
