LANCE Franklin needs seven more goals to reach a career total of 700 goals.

Depending on the service provided by his Sydney Swans teammates and his own ability to conjure goals out of seemingly nothing, the milestone might be reached on Friday night at the SCG against Richmond.

It won't be easy against Alex Rance, the All Australian Tiger defender fresh off signing a new four-year deal, but Franklin is a long-time tormentor of Richmond, the club that had it had the courage of its convictions, would have had Franklin in its colours from day one.

It speaks volumes about the quality of the 693 goals that Lance Franklin has kicked until now in his spectacular career that two of the most significant don't feature in the list of the top 10.

There was his 100^th goal of the season in 2008 while playing for Hawthorn, which in itself was a routine chip shot after a lace-out pass from Cyril Rioli. That goal, in the final round of the season against Carlton at Etihad Stadium marked the last time in the AFL that a player has kicked a century of goals.

So great was his 2008 season that the Hawks released a DVD package, Buddy's Bonanza, which showcased every one of the 113 goals he kicked for the year. 

In 2012 there was the 13-goal haul against North Melbourne on that freezing, but uplifting afternoon at Aurora Stadium. The number of goals, rather than the quality was most notable that day although the effort to get the 13^th goal inside the final 30 seconds was eye-popping, while Anthony Hudson's memorable "Thirteeeeeen!" call on the TV coverage has become part of footy's vernacular.

Our collection of the best 10 Franklin goals starts with one of his very first. After a goalless debut against the Sydney Swans in round one of 2005, he kicked three goals the following week against Richmond at the MCG. One of these was an instant classic and a glimpse of so many he would kick thereafter - a gather, a scorching run and then a long bomb at full pace from the northern pocket.

It was special for a couple of reasons. The Tigers were worried about Franklin's personality traits and chose to bypass him with the first and fourth overall selections at the previous year's national draft. Watching the replay, it seems Franklin was happy to prove a point that afternoon.

But that goal also offered a glimmer of hope for the Hawks that their own dark days would soon be over. Franklin was already giving supporters a reason to come to the footy once more and Jarryd Roughead and Jordan Lewis would debut the next very next week as Alastair Clarkson started his radical rebuild of the club.

The other goals show Franklin at his best, combining his rare combination of height, pace, smarts, athleticism and plain old goalsense. The goal against Fremantle from 2008 (#8 on the accompanying video package) is one example of that.

Another was the 2013 goal against Collingwood, replete with the Tim Watson-esque leap over an opponent on the way through. It was a fabulous goal, but also a melancholy moment for Hawthorn supporters because it was already quite clear that he would be moving on at the end of the season. Who knew how many more great moments he had left in brown and gold?

Not that many as it turned out, and he has already provided the Swans with plenty of fresh highlights. In round 13 last year at the SCG he kicked 5.4 in a frenetic win over Port Adelaide and two goals from that game alone have made our top 10.  

But the iconic goals mainly came while still a Hawk and so many on big occasions. After Hawthorn went goalless in the second quarter of the 2012 Grand Final, Franklin carried the team on his shoulders in the third term and our collection (#9) includes a towering goal on the run from outside 50 metres that brought his team to within a kick. We have also included (#6) his freakish snap that put the Hawks ahead with just three minutes left of the 2011 preliminary final against Collingwood, a lead the Hawks ultimately couldn't hold.

Lance Franklin has given Cale Hooker and the Dons plenty of nightmares over the years. Picture: AFL Media

The fourth goal on our list was the most audacious, as Franklin turned Western Bulldogs defender and future Hawthorn teammate Brian Lake inside out, swatted the ball to the ground like a basketball, got it back then turned on to his preferred left foot and slammed home the goal from 50 metres.

That goal came at the MCG in the 2008 qualifying final, by which time Franklin was every inch a star, the biggest name in the game and nigh on unstoppable.

And the game that elevated him to the stratosphere? That would be the elimination final the year before against Adelaide when he coolly slotted the match winner for the Hawks on a tight angle with just seconds remaining. That goal is no.3 on our list.

Our top-ranked Franklin goal is a no-brainer – the 2010 running, bouncing effort against Essendon at the MCG where he left Cale Hooker eating his dust. He kicked an almost identical goal earlier that quarter, but such is Franklin's brilliance that we could still find 10 others that were better. 

During Franklin's rampage against North Melbourne in 2012, commentator Hudson said on the Foxtel broadcast that sometimes, "you just have to sit back and enjoy the show". 

There haven’t been any better shows that Franklin in footy for the last 10 years.