AFL grand final: Jack Henry shuts down Buddy Franklin in premiership win

There is no bigger stage than grand final day, and there is no bigger opponent than Lance Franklin, but for Cats defender Jack Henry, stopping ‘Buddy’ was just another job.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - SEPTEMBER 24: Jack Henry of the Cats and Lance Franklin of the Swans compete for the ball during the 2022 Toyota AFL Grand Final match between the Geelong Cats and the Sydney Swans at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on September 24, 2022 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

There is no bigger stage than grand final day, and there is no bigger opponent than Lance Franklin, but for Cats defender Jack Henry, stopping ‘Buddy’ was just another job.

In the lead up to the season decider, it was expected young gun Sam De Koning would be given the job on the 1000-goal legend, but it was Henry that shook his hand at the first bounce.

Henry said he was given just two days notice before taking on Franklin.

“It wasn’t something I had too much time to think about, we sort of spoke about it a bit on Wednesday and then on Thursday it was pretty locked in,” he said.

Jack Henry was given the job on Lance Franklin in the 2022 AFL Grand Final. Picture: Dylan Burns

“There’s a number of guys who could’ve taken the role, we’ve got such a good backline that I would’ve trusted anyone.”

Franklin was kept goalless for just the second time this season, and was kept to his lowest disposal tally of the year with just five touches in the game.

He collected two disposals in the last quarter to the Bronx cheers of Geelong fans who were beginning to revel in the victory.

Henry said he felt he “owed” Franklin after the superstar kicked his 1000th goal against him in round 2.

“It wasn’t nice to have that 1000th goal kicked on me, I appreciate that I’m a part of history but it’s one of those things where you don’t want to be that guy,” he said.

Jack Henry was one of Geelong’s best defenders in the 81-point victory. Picture: Daniel Carson

“He’s an absolute legend of the game though, I have so much respect for what he’s been able to do, not only this year but his whole career.

“‘Bud’ is one of the greatest players in football, it was great the coaches trusted me to do a good job.”

Sydney kicked four goals in the final quarter to finish 8.4 (52) to 20.13 (133) behind the Cats, with veteran midfielder Isaac Smith winning the Norm Smith Medal for his 32 disposals and three goals.

Geelong had no passengers in the 81-point victory, but Henry said the group’s defensive efforts would go unnoticed in the glory of the goalkicking.

“Our defensive unit has been so awesome all year, we’ve had guys coming in and playing great roles all year,” he said.

Sam De Koning was one of Geelong’s best players in 2022. Picture: Quinn Rooney

“Sam (De Koning) has been so good in his first year, he’s such a beast for us.

“The great thing with our set-up is we’re all able to roll off and help each other out, Sammy came over the top a few times.

“I was confident that whoever we had matched up on their forwards would do a great job and we showed it.”

Originally published as AFL grand final: Jack Henry shuts down Buddy Franklin in premiership win