A KNEE injury to $10 million dollar man Lance Franklin has soured the Sydney Swans' 31-point win over Melbourne on Saturday night at the MCG.
Three days after Franklin's traffic prang in Sydney that left four parked cars damaged, his tumultuous start to life as a Swan took another turn when he landed awkwardly in a marking contest.
The Swans went on to win 9.15 (69) to 5.8 (38) after breaking open a tight first-half tussle but will be left to assess their prized recruit's right knee, which saw him subbed out in the third quarter.
The injury is to the same knee he hurt in the 2011 qualifying final against Geelong.
It has had to be managed ever since and he has periodically missed games as a result, including the Indigenous All Stars game in February last year.
Lewis Jetta was also treated for a right calf complaint.
While Jetta played out the game, it was Franklin's substitution that opened the door for the return of dual premiership veteran Adam Goodes.
Going into the game, all eyes were on Goodes – who joined Chris Judd and Luke Ball as unexpected players to start in the green vest this season – after 10 months spent mending a knee injury.
He nearly kicked a goal within seconds of coming on after gathering the ball outside 50 and spying an empty goal square.
Goodes ended with five touches and four inside 50s, providing some positivity along with the hard-fought result.
Franklin had been quiet before his injury with just one goal but things were tough for forwards in the first half.
After the Swans kicked four goals to one in the first term – all from turnovers – the Demons stymied the Swans' supply into attack, which also starved Lewis Roberts-Thomson of the ball.
The Swans failed to kick a major in the quarter with both teams managing just five scoring shots between them.
However, the Swans' pressure was constant and their tackle rate was lifting but the Demons absorbed it much better than they have in recent years.
Chris Dawes was the sole goal-kicker for the term, which saw the Swans take a 17-point lead into the second half.
Melbourne's first-round draft selection Christian Salem made his debut after coming on as the sub in the third quarter and kicked a well-received goal in his limited minutes.
Dan Hannebery led the Swans' midfield, which lifted in last week's win over Fremantle, with a huge 13 clearances, and Josh Kennedy and Rhyce Shaw were also significant.
It wasn't a pretty win but the Swans did what they came to do and will enter next week's winnable clash against the Brisbane Lions with an even 3-3 ledger.
Meanwhile, the Demons again brought increased effort and a win in the tackle stakes, 71-64, but the fact remained they just couldn't stick with the experienced Swans despite the untidy nature of the game.
It was a tough day for Lance Franklin from the outset. Picture: AFL Media
MELBOURNE 1.2 2.3 4.4 5.8 (38)
SYDNEY SWANS 4.5 4.8 7.12 9.15 (69)
GOALS
Melbourne: Byrnes, Dawes, Tyson, M. Jones, Salem
Sydney Swans: Jack 2, Parker, Franklin, Hannebery, Cunningham, Kennedy, McGlynn, Derickx
BEST
Melbourne: M. Jones, N. Jones, Vince, Dunn, Terlich, McDonald
Sydney Swans: Hannebery, Kennedy, Parker, Jack, Shaw, Rampe
INJURIES
Melbourne: TBC
Sydney Swans: Franklin (knee), Jetta (calf),
SUBSTITUTES
Melbourne: Christian Salem replaced Neville Jetta in the third quarter
Sydney Swans: Adam Goodes replaced Lance Franklin (right knee) in the third quarter
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Margetts, Ryan, Mitchell
Official crowd: 24,855 at the MCG
