It’ll go down as one of the all-time great matchups between the GIANTS and the Swans - the Phil Davis vs Lance Franklin battle is always a highly anticipated one, and Sydney Derby XXIII was no different.

Franklin entered Saturday night's season-opener five goals short of his 1000th, but the champion forward was well held by Davis, registering eight disposals and a goal. 

"I put a lot of time into preparation, footage, understanding the game and the percentages, that for me is the biggest part of my game, " Davis told Sportsday. 

"I was mentally exhausted after the game on Saturday night. 

"The level of concentration required to play on Buddy Franklin for me nobody compares to that because you just don’t get away with mistakes playing on him."