John Longmire has rejected suggestions Sydney had grown sick of Lance Franklin before the AFL great retired.
Head coach Longmire on Tuesday swatted away claims of a fall-out between Franklin and the club, after media reports following the Swans' 33-point win against Collingwood on Friday suggested Sydney had grown tired of their star key forward.
Elusive and media shy, Franklin passed up a press conference following his 1000th goal in March 2022, before famously missing his own retirement announcement.
"No, we hadn't had enough of Lance," Longmire said when asked about the reports.
"Lance has been one of the most popular players we've had at this football club, and certainly one of the best players I've ever coached.
"He was a super player for us and I had a great relationship with him which I will always treasure.
"His ability to contribute to our footy club, on and off the field, was absolutely significant.
"He was 36 (when he retired). You know, strangely enough you get to the stage where you go and do other things."
Longmire added that Franklin's legacy lives on not just in his four Coleman medals and eight All-Australian nods but also in the strength of the Swans' young key forwards.
Young gun Logan McDonald stole the show in round one, kicking four majors against the reigning premiers.
The 21-year-old kicked two goals in each of the second and third terms before falling short of equalling his career-best tally when he missed a fifth shot in the final quarter.
Fellow young talents Hayden McLean and Joel Amartey also hit the scoreboard.
"He's not a bad player Lance Franklin," Longmire said.
"He wasn't a bad one to help us through for a fair while and so I've got the greatest respect for him.
"One of his great legacies ... (was) his ability to be a star player and win us games but the other part was he allowed our younger key forwards to come through.
"The natural progression of young key forwards is a bit different than young midfielders.
"Lance was able to take the key defenders from the opposition for so long and allow those younger key forwards like Logan and Joel to come through and develop physically.
"His last year or two was as much about that as what he was able to deliver for us winning games.
"His legacy at this footy club is far-reaching."
