SYDNEY superstar Lance Franklin is confident he is fully fit to return from injury for his long-delayed 300th AFL match as the Swans’ season ends on Saturday.
The 32-year-old Franklin says he is also confident of playing the remaining four seasons of his nine-year, mega-deal and is sure he will finish his career at the Swans.
He is set to return from a hamstring injury which has sidelined him since round 14 when he plays his milestone match against St Kilda at the SCG.
“It’s been a frustrating year…but I finally got my body right and I’m ready to get out there,” Franklin said on Thursday.
“I’m definitely very proud – to play 300 games, you’ve got to be doing something right.”
Franklin’s milestone game will coincide with possible farewell matches for fellow club greats Kieran Jack and Jarrad McVeigh – two of the four premiership-winning Swans hanging up their boots this season.
“I feel really excited – it’s going to be a huge day for the footy club,” said Franklin, who will be aiming to add to his 940 career goals.
This season marks the first time Sydney hasn’t made the finals in 10 years, something that Franklin, who won two flags with Hawthorn before joining the Swans at the end of 2013, said was a strange feeling.
But Franklin said a silver lining was that emerging players like teenagers Tom McCartin and Nick Blake had received a taste of the big league, something which would hold the club in good stead.
He believed the Swans could bounce back quickly next season.
“It’s going to be hard watching (the finals),” he said.
“But the biggest thing for us is, we’ve got a young group, but we’ve got a lot of experience too, so I can definitely see us popping back up into finals next year.”
© AAP 2019