Hawthorn superstar Lance Franklin is unsure whether he will make it onto the field for the AFL's pre-season competition as he works his way back from injury.

Franklin had surgery to repair shoulder and thumb injuries after the Hawks' stunning grand final win, with his recovery still keeping him from participating in contact training.

The 21-year-old, who last year became the first player in a decade to kick 100 goals during an AFL home and away season, said his first experience of being held back during a pre-season was causing some frustration.

"The last four pre-seasons I've basically done nearly everything and this is the first pre-season where I've only done probably less than 50 per cent," Franklin said on Wednesday.

"It's a little bit disappointing, but I've just got to keep working pre-season, keep pushing myself and hopefully I get right for round one."

While he was confident he would not miss any regular season matches, he was less sure of his pre-season prospects.

"We'll see what happens, if it feels alright obviously I'll get out there and play, but if it's not right at that time I'll just leave it and wait until round one," Franklin said.

As well as the injury concerns, the freakishly talented forward will have to cope with even greater expectations, both personally and as a member of the premiership side, given the stellar 2008 seasons on both fronts.

But he was confident he and the team would not be burdened by their success.

"Obviously last year was a big year for us, we won the premiership, but we're just putting that behind us now, it's a new year," Franklin said.

"We've had a strong pre-season right now and we're just in that phase of working hard as a team and putting in another good hard pre-season and hopefully we can put together some good games and see how far we go again.

"Obviously we're going to be hunted this year and I suppose as a team we would like that too.

"We're just going to keep playing the football we played last year and hopefully it will take us back to where we were last year."

But he admitted there was at least one facet of his game that could use some improvement in 2009.

"Probably kick straight I reckon," he said.

While Franklin kicked 102 goals during the home and away season, he also posted 84 behinds.

By contrast, Tony Lockett, the most recent player before Franklin to kick a ton in the regular season, in 1998, kicked 107 goals and only 35 behinds that year.

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