HAWTHORN coach Alastair Clarkson has added an amusing Jeff Kennett metaphor to this week's by-play about winged Swan Lance Franklin's history with his former club.
The Hawks' walking-headline and club president Kennett told Melbourne radio station Nova on Wednesday morning that Franklin had "never played well against Hawthorn".
Kennett's statement hasn't aged well, given the number of people that have shot it down by going through Franklin's performances, but it has worked a treat in keeping people talking.
The Sydney superstar is in doubt to face his ex-teammates on Saturday night at the SCG because of a groin injury, after missing the corresponding clash this year with a bruised heel.
"Jeff's a little bit like our footy jumper, isn't he? The gold is pretty good and the brown is a little bit dark sometimes, so it's all part of the intrigue of the game," Clarkson said at Melbourne Airport on Friday.
"I don't think (Franklin) needs any motivation to play against the Hawks.
"He's a very proud man and we're going to need to do our very best to stop the supply to him, because once it gets to him, he's going to kick goals.
"Having said that, we did that really well in round eight against them – and had 23 more inside 50s – and they still knocked us off."
That night third-gamer Ben Ronke bobbed up to kick seven goals and rip the game from the Hawks, in what ended up being the fifth single-digit margin between the sides in seven meetings.
If Franklin does play he won't be guarded by James Frawley, with Hawthorn's premiership defender failing to recover from a back issue.
The winner will secure a top-four berth and the all-important double chance in the finals, although Clarkson – as he does – downplayed the Hawks' 2018 flag chances as "pretty unrealistic".
"We've had some intriguing battles with them and it promises to be another one this week," Clarkson said.
"There's a bit more on the line in this one – round 23 and finals are just on the doorstep.
"Both sides are a chance to get a double chance if they win this game, so there's plenty on it."
Clarkson said in the aftermath of his side's eight-point loss to the Swans last time that Sydney's defenders got away with "blue murder".
He had cooled on that topic by the time it came up again on Friday.
"They defend in a really sophisticated manner (and) they have for a long period of time," Clarkson said.
"They've been the best defence, in my view, for 10 years and they'll continue to defend that way and we've got to work out ways to try and get around it.
"But they're a side that regularly keeps teams to only 10 goals and we've got to work out a ball-movement pattern that allows us to get through it tomorrow night."
