Despite taking a few weeks to find his feet in his new side, Franklin showed on numerous occasions why he is considered one of the most dangerous forwards in the competition, and was able to lead the Swans to several victories with his on-field brilliance.
In particular, his game-changing performance against Port Adelaide in round 13 at the SCG, where he booted the side’s final five goals – including an almost 70-metre bomb – was one of Buddy’s most impressive efforts, while his nine-goal haul against St Kilda in round 21 also showed his dominance.
Speaking to sydneyswans.com.au Franklin, who also finished in equal second-place in the 2014 Brownlow Medal, said he was determined to help the Swans reach even greater heights in 2015.
The Grand Final is not a topic anyone is particularly keen to talk about, but what were your reflections on the game?
It was obviously disappointing to lose to Hawthorn in the Grand Final. Sitting back on it now, it’s a bad feeling, and while it’s something I’ve been through before, and a lot of the boys have, the feeling doesn’t get any better and is always in the back of your mind. But you’ve got to push on and move forward as a footy club, and we know what we need to do to get back there again. It’s going to be a long pre-season, but one we’ll be looking forward to.
Looking at the year as a whole, how did you feel about your first season at the Swans?
I thought my season was pretty good and was pretty consistent.
How about winning the Coleman Medal and earning All-Australian selection?
Those achievements are probably something I’ll look back on when I finish my career, but your goals while you’re playing are to win premierships and this year we weren’t able to do that. So we’ll go back to the drawing board and do what we need to do to improve as a footy club and will go forward from there.
Who were some of the team mates who impressed you in your first year at the club?
‘Parksy’(Luke Parker) and Gary Rohan are some good young players who are coming through the club. It’s an exciting time for the footy club because there is so much young talent at the club. It’s just about getting another pre-season into a lot of the younger blokes and going from there.
You obviously had a great season, but are there any key areas you hope to improve on for next season?
Goal kicking would definitely be one for me. I probably say that every year, but in the off-season I’ll have a break and will have some time to rest up and after that I’ll be training as hard as possible on my goal kicking to try and get my percentage a little bit better, which will be good.
Lastly, what are your plans for the off-season?
I’m heading away to Europe for a while, which will be nice, and then I’ll get back to sunny Sydney.
