Mathew Lloyd says Sydney will have to start rotating Lance Franklin out of their side as the veteran continues to struggle for form in 2023.
The superstar forward — like the rest of the Swans forward line — was unable to take advantage of the team’s barrage of 67 inside fifty entries in their loss to Port Adelaide on Saturday.
The nail-biting, after-the-siren loss at the SCG has put the Swans’ forward targets under the microscope and Lloyd told The Sunday Footy Show coach John Longmire has a “hard decision” to make.
Watch every match of AFL Gather Round LIVE & ad-break free in play on Kayo Sports. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
It is Callum Mills that has taken the most heat in the fall-out to the defeat after he celebrated early and abandoned his spot on the goal line as teammate Ollie Florent’s kick was held up in the wind and landed short after the siren.
Replays showed Mills ran off the line to celebrate before Port defender Aliir Aliir flew from behind the goals to block the ball before it crossed the line.
In a comedy of errors by the Swans, Franklin ended up the only Swans player to try and clear space on the goal line coming from the opposite direction.
The former Hawthorn premiership star cannoned into the back of a Power player, but his clean out only cleared an open path for Aliir to make a jump at the ball.
With Swans ruckman Peter Ladhams muscled out of position, Aliir, Charlie Dixon and Tom Jonas were all in great position to stop the ball from crossing the line.
Channel 7 journalist Mitch Cleary said Franklin was most at-fault.
“Forget Callum Mills, where’s Buddy’s arm across Aliir Aliir to impede the most dangerous defender’s run at the ball,” Cleary wrote on Twitter.
“Aliir is getting to it regardless of whether Mills is there or not.”
Lloyd said he is more concerned with Franklin’s general form so far this season — and Sydney’s lack of threat when Franklin, Logan McDonald and Joel Armartey are all inside the 50m arc.
Lloyd said Sydney’s young forward talents haven’t been able to play well when Buddy has been in the team.
“Johnny Longmire either has to drop one of the kids and he’ll probably cop it a fair bit for it,” Lloyd said.
When asked if Franklin was up for being dropped, Lloyd responded: “He has to be. He’s not playing well.
“The three don’t work and then you’ve got Ladhams in the ruck so they’re just too big. They’ve got to make a hard decision, Sydney. They’ve got a lot of talent.”
He said the Swans should begin to manage Franklin to spend time on the sidelines in the same way Richmond has with champions Trent Cotchin and Jack Riewoldt.
“They’re not going to cut him because they’ve got too much respect for him, but in some weeks he’s not the right option for the Sydney Swans.”
It was a tough night for the Swans, who also lost Paddy McCartin to a horror blow when an innocuous moment say the concussion-prone star stumble from the field.
Swans General Manager of Football Charlie Gardiner told media at quarter time that McCartin was “alert and talking”, and “feeling okay”.
“We’re all very concerned about it, but he’s feeling okay and recovering well,” Gardiner said.
“We’ll take every precaution with him.”
McCartin departed the bench before halftime, and news.com.au understands he has not been sent to hospital as yet.
ABC’s Kyle Pollard called it “as distressing as any injury I’ve seen on the footy field.
“Fingers crossed his recovery is quick,” he said.
His brother Tom McCartin was also subbed out due to concussion in the second quarter.
