LANCE Franklin is the most recent player to have kicked 100 goals in a season and may well be the last to reach 1000 career goals.

But with 27 majors still to be scored before he reaches 1000, the Sydney superstar will probably need to kick a bag of goals to break the magical four-figure mark this season.

Franklin moved up to sixth place on the all-time goalkickers list with his four goals against Port Adelaide last week, passing Richmond great Jack 'Skinny' Titus and finishing the match 27 goals short of his next major milestone.

It has taken Franklin 310 matches to kick 973 goals, at an average of 3.14 goals a game, but he'll need to improve on that strike rate to be sure of reaching four figures this season.

With only eight home and away games left to play, Franklin would need to play every match and average 3.38 goals a game to kick his 1000th major in the regular season.

If the Swans play one final, the three goals required per game would fall below Franklin's career average and the 3.07 goals a game (393 goals in 128 matches) he has kicked with his second club.

While the game itself – and the way Franklin plays it – have undeniably changed since he started his career with Hawthorn in 2005, the key forward remains one of the most potent players in the League.

Even in his 17th season Franklin is kicking goals at a remarkable rate, with his 29 in 10 matches the third best average of players to line up in more than two matches this season.

But while the 34-year-old continues to hit the scoreboard regularly, a bag of 10 or more goals in the next two months would make it much more likely that he reaches 1000 goals this season.

And recent history is on his side.

In each of the four past 'normal' seasons, a star forward has kicked a bag of at least nine goals in the final rounds of the season.

Ben Brown (10 goals, round 22) and Jeremy Cameron (nine goals, round 23) memorably went head-to-head for the Coleman Medal in 2019, while Jack Riewoldt kicked 10 against Gold Coast in round 21, 2018.

Buddy secured the Coleman Medal in 2017 with a 10-goal feast against Carlton in the final round, while Nick Riewoldt had a day out against Brisbane with nine goals and an astonishing 21 marks in round 23, 2016.

While it's become commonplace in late-season rounds, the five forwards to kick 1000 career goals kicked bags of 10-plus for fun. Tony Lockett leads all-comers by doing it 16 times before he reached the milestone.

Jason Dunstall (14), Gary Ablett (12), Gordon Coventry (nine) and Doug Wade (four) also had 10-goal games more regularly than Franklin.

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Buddy has slotted 10 or more goals on two occasions – with his famous 13 for the Hawks against North Melbourne in 2012, along with the aforementioned 10 for the Swans against the Blues in 2017.

Franklin will have some golden opportunities to kick another bag of 10 or more, as the Swans finish their season with five home and away matches against teams currently in the bottom 10.

The final two matches in particular, against lowly Gold Coast and the Kangaroos, look ideal for another bag from Buddy the showman to bring up his 1000th career goal in the most dramatic way.

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