Buddy in hot water as Swans thump Dockers
Sydney's 40-point AFL win over Fremantle on the Gold Coast has been soured with Lance Franklin in hot water after catching an opponent in the face with an elbow.
The Swans superstar was penalised after connecting with his left elbow to the head of Fremantle's Luke Ryan in the second quarter of the 14.14 (98) to 8.10 (58) win at Metricon Stadium on Sunday.
Franklin may also find himself attracting the attention of the AFL match review officer for an incident in the first quarter when he caught Nathan Wilson high in a marking contest.
Sydney's 40-point AFL win over Fremantle on the Gold Coast has been soured with Lance Franklin in hot water after catching an opponent in the face with an elbow
It's not the first time the key forward has been in trouble this season after he was fined $2,000 for making forceful front-on contact with Port Adelaide's Jarrod Lienert last month.
'Limited vision a bit where I was sitting on the bench,' Swans coach John Longmire said when asked about the incidents.
'I saw the marking contest but didn't say anything else other than that.'
Franklin ended the game with two goals, moving to 983 for his career as he closes in on the thousand-goal milestone.
Moments after his run-in with Franklin, Ryan was in the thick of the action when Isaac Heeney used him as a stepladder to take a sensational mark which sparked a three-goal run by the Swans to take a three-point lead into the half.
The Swans would go on to kick eight unanswered goals across the second and third quarters as they kept their top four charge alive with a fourth-straight win.
Heeney ended the game with five goals and 22 disposals in an all-action display while Luke Parker had two majors for the Swans.
Josh Kennedy was also sensational for the Swans with 34 disposals, seven tackles and seven clearances.
Fremantle's day of celebration, as veteran David Mundy made his 350th AFL appearance, quickly turned into a horror show.
After a strong start where Justin Longmuir's team failed to really capitalise on their dominance, the Dockers finished the match without captain Nat Fyfe (shoulder) and small forward Michael Walters (hamstring).
Dockers coach Longmuir said after the match Fyfe was most likely facing season-ending surgery after it dislocated for the second time this season.
Walters may also struggle to return before the end of the season with the 10th-placed Dockers' finals hopes hanging by a thread after back-to-back defeats.
'We need to be better when the opposition get on top,' Longmuir said.
'We played really good footy, should have been probably more in front ... felt like we butchered a few opportunities which opened the door for them.
'We need to be able to hold up and understand when the opposition challenge, there's ways that we can control that challenge and getting games back on our terms. It just went on for way too long today.'
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