Lance Franklin has chosen grand final week to make the sudden announcement that he will play on with Sydney in 2023.
The announcement was made via social media as the 35-year-old prepares for his sixth grand final as Sydney takes on Geelong on Saturday.
He was among the Swans’ best in Saturday’s nail-biting one-point win over Collingwood, kicking two goals and taking a crucial mark in the dying stages of the game as his team attempted to hang on to their narrow lead.
Lance Franklin has a chance to deliver his first flag as a Swan on SatudayCredit:Getty Images
The decision means Franklin will enter his 10th season with Sydney, having signed a monster nine-year deal to leave Hawthorn to join the Swans as a free agent at the end of 2013.
He announced that decision just days after playing in Hawthorn’s 2013 premiership, having kicked 113 goals in 2008 when the Hawks won their first flag under Alastair Clarkson.
Franklin has kicked more than 50 goals in a season yet again in 2022, the 13th time he has done so in his career, and passed the 1000-goal milestone against Geelong at the SCG in round two.
He has now kicked 1047 goals in his 340-game career and is just 10 goals away from equalling former Cat and Kangaroo Doug Wade in fourth place on the all-time goalkickers list behind Tony Lockett (1360 goals), Gordon Coventry (1299) and Jason Dunstall (1254).
Franklin is yet to win a premiership at Sydney but his time at the club has been a resounding success, kicking 467 goals in 158 games so far after booting 580 goals in 182 games at Hawthorn.
The negotiations for a new deal have been drawn out with suggestions the champion was considering retiring or playing another season at another club, although the Swans remained steadfast in their belief Franklin would play with them or retire in 2023.
He had a poor qualifying final against Melbourne but bounced back against Collingwood and heads into the grand final as a significant threat to Geelong as they attempt to win their first flag for 11 seasons while the Swans try to break through for the first time since 2012.
Back in July, The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald reported that Franklin had been left bemused by reports suggesting he was contemplating retirement or leaving Sydney for a third club.
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