Lance Franklin put on a stunning sequel to rival his 2018 original as he returned to Optus Stadium, but it was another superstar in Nat Fyfe who had the final say as Fremantle scrambled home in a classic last night.

The Dockers should have won by more than two points after dominating most of the second half, but a heroic six-goal performance from Franklin — including three in the final term — kept the Swans in the hunt despite being hammered 69-45 in the supply battle.

On a night of riveting entertainment that brimmed with sub plots, fans were on the edge of their seats and Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir couldn’t even remain in his as Fyfe kicked the final goal of the game.

It took the skipper’s tally for the season to 3.16. But there was no time to think about nerves as he instinctively snapped truly from a Sean Darcy hit-out with four minutes on the clock.

MORE AFL NEWS

• Key Dockers stand up when it matters most in famous win
• Three-word analysis of every Docker in epic triumph
• Who impressed & who didn’t in Freo’s win

Defender Luke Ryan also stood up at the death, repelling one final Sydney thrust with a fisted rushed behind as the Dockers got home 12.14 (86) to 13.6 (84) having trailed by 15 points at half-time.

Franklin and Fyfe — who had 13 clearances and 27 touches to go with his winning goal — were superb on a night the stars shone, but the Dockers were also indebted to a forward 50 monster of their own as Rory Lobb discovered the self-belief to amplify his natural gifts.

Lobb finished with 4.0 to answer Franklin’s 6.1 and the siren fittingly sounded with the ball in Lobb’s huge hands.

Spearhead Matt Taberner worryingly went down with an ankle injury in the third term, but it only let Lobb take full ownership of the 50m arc.

Lobb’s big clunk mid-way through the third quarter might have been less of a mark than the attempt he controversially wasn’t paid last week, but it still oozed authority and confidence and his duly finished it with his fourth goal.

The stutter was replaced by swagger and Freo finally had the man they hoped they were getting when they traded him in at the end of the 2018 season.

BUDDY v GRIFF

The game within a game was an absorbing battle and helped make this special game what it was.

Fremantle defender Griffin Logue was just six years old when Franklin made his debut in round one, 2005.

He was given the job on the ageing champion last night and from the outset it was fascinating – the athletic youngster at his physical peak and the cagey veteran using plenty of smarts and bluster even though his 34-year-old legs didn’t quite propel him like they used to.

Buddy rode his luck to six goals, with two coming from less than convincing holding the man free kicks, but three other three goals came from bombs from outside the arc. Even in his twilight, he’s an unstoppable force when he’s on and Logue couldn’t stop him.

Logue had an early win with a one-on-one mark and later nailed his man with a tackle for holding the ball after a neat pick-up.

But the veteran struck back with two quick first-quarter goals. One came after he worried Logue into grabbing his guernsey and another after a typically booming set shot from outside the arc, which came after he talked the umpire into setting the mark a step or two closer to goal than where it might have been.

Franklin spent time on the bench in the second term and was quiet until he picked Logue’s pocket and snuck out the bag to nail another long goal, this time on the bounce from inside the centre square.

The big Swan didn’t see the ball as the Dockers dominated the third term, but had a shot after the three-quarter time siren which failed to score after he was warned by umpires he couldn’t use his ‘natural arc’.

Another bomb from 55m gave Franklin his fourth early in the final term as he dragged the Swans back into the contest. Franklin’s fifth and sixth goals both put his side in front on a night he couldn’t have done much more.

Former Hawthorn firebrand Dermott Brereton quipped Franklin was the only one who could afford the fines when the superstar was in the middle of a huge half-time melee, ending it with a guernsey that was almost ripped in two.

CYCLONE TREACY

We’re not talking about the weather, which generally stayed away after some pre-match rain made things slippery, but the arrival of youngster Josh Treacy who finally got his first goal.

Dropped earlier in the season after three goalless games, Treacy missed an early chance to break his duck when he snapped a behind in general play and dropped a mark in the second term.

He struggled to get involved but certainly nailed his moment, beautifully striking his first goal in AFL football from outside 50 to give the Dockers back the lead nearing time-on of the last quarter.

Treacy might have a bigger role to play in coming weeks, as the Dockers sweat on the results of scans on Taberner’s right ankle.