Retired AFL superstar Lance Franklin is returning to the sport as the official ambassador for Superkick.
Franklin farewelled the AFL last year after a career that yielded 1066 goals from 354 games across 19 brilliant seasons with Hawthorn and Sydney.
He is a certainty to be inducted into the AFL Hall of Fame and will likely be elevated to Legend status one day.
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Since retiring, he has moved up to the Gold Coast where he will begin his new role.
The 37-year-old will help 10,000 kids in the AFL’s new Superkick program, which is billed as Auskick’s “cooler older sibling”.
The program is designed for eight to 12-year-olds who are either looking to develop their footy skills or who are picking up a footy for the first time.
AFL Superkick is tackle-free, has smaller team sizes and a shorter season, providing the perfect introduction for new participants or pathway for continual play after the end of local club footy.
As part of Franklin’s role, he will visit schools, get out in the community and most importantly, “put a smile on kids’ faces”.
“When I retired, I obviously wanted to take a big deep breath. I’ve obviously had that year off now, and probably the last couple of months I’ve been looking at getting back involved in football in some aspect,” he said.
“When this opportunity had come up, I jumped at it and thought, ‘You know what? This will work really well for me’.
“I really want to help young kids out and see the game grow as much as possible throughout Australia, and to be here today at this school and have a kick with the kids is incredible.
“I’m looking forward to the next couple of months.”
Franklin highlighted the multiple benefits of the program for kids.
“I think the most important thing is seeing the smile on the kids’ faces … then also getting out there and building new friendships,” he said.
“I think that’s the most important thing … being active, getting outside and building new friendships is really important in this program.”
Franklin also said he is loving life up on the Gold Coast after moving north from Sydney after his retirement.
