Port Adelaide great Kane Cornes has ripped Lance Franklin after the champion forward released a statement on Saturday declaring he’d put contract talks on hold until the end of the season.
The news, dropped by Franklin’s manager Adam Finch, came after the 1000-goal superstar was linked to a move to the Lions as he nears the end of his nine-year, $10 million contract with the Swans.
Journalist Damian Barrett said the timing was audacious with the Swans traveling to Melbourne for their game against North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium.
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“It’s a provocative statement to release through his manager – another new manager – on the day he was traveling with his team to Melbourne to play a game of footy, to say he’s putting all contract talks on hold,” Barrett told Nine’s The Sunday Footy Show.
“If you want to read into it, which we (as the media) do – we criticize and analyze and dissect – it’s a statement that says [he’s] not going to be at Sydney next year unless they considerably up the ante, which they have been reluctant to do for their own reason to this point.”
With the statement also opening the door to Franklin possibility retiring at season’s end, Cornes suggested the particulars were self-centred.
“It was a very ‘me, me, me’ thing to do, I thought, from Buddy Franklin, when the Sydney Swans are flying,” he said.
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“They’ve paid him $10 million over nine years … I understand that (he’s delivered on his contract), but I’m not sure you need to release a statement prior to the game. What was the point of Buddy doing that?
“It didn’t alleviate any of the talk… it made the talk fester more.
“The day before a game to release a statement like that, I thought it was really strange.”
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