North Melbourne will look at trading star forward Ben Brown, the club confirmed on Wednesday night.
The 27-year-old has endured an injury-interrupted year but at his best is one of the most damaging forwards in the game, having booted over 60 goals in three of the last four seasons.
North Melbourne football boss Brady Rawlings says potentially trading Brown would be a “difficult” decision for fans to take.
The club confirmed Rawlings and coach Rhyce Shaw informed Brown of the decision last Friday.
“It’s not a decision we’ve made lightly as Ben has been a tremendous part of our club since 2014,” he said in a club statement.
“It was a very honest discussion. Ben was very mature and understood our decision.
“We will work with Ben and his management to secure a mutually beneficial outcome.
“These recent changes can be difficult for everyone involved, including our members, but they have been made in the best interests of the club.”
“We have a clear plan and pathway to lead this club back to finals as quickly as possible.
“We know our members will back us in and trust we are only interested in getting better across the board. We will use every avenue and mechanism available to achieve that.”