Brendon Goddard has cautioned Essendon against making a move for wantaway North Melbourne forward Ben Brown, saying the club needs to find a more long-term option.
The Bombers will be searching for more firepower up front after both Joe Daniher and Orazio Fantasia signalled their intention to leave the club.
But while Brown has been linked to several opposition sides including Collingwood and Melbourne, Goddard doesn’t want to see him at Essendon in 2021.
“I think it’s a short-term fix,” Goddard said on AFL Trade Radio’s Trade Mornings.
“Essendon has got to make a decision whether they go down that path … I don’t think that would be a good move.
“Whether they look to securing a younger tall and then working with him to become a 10-year player that we all hope every draftee is.
“I think the longer-term play is better for Essendon.”
The 27-year-old struggled with form and injury issues throughout 2020, kicking just eight goals from nine games.
Goddard said Brown’s future club should look at playing him as a second tall, rather than making him the focal point in attack.
“I think he needs to be the second or third forward,” he said.
“I don’t think he can be the main man – I think he’s a little bit too one-dimensional.
“He must be in a head spin, now that a new coach will come in at (North Melbourne), he hasn’t got an option to say ‘we can make this work’.
“As a player you want options and for Ben Brown, he’d think he’d have more options based on what’s happened in the last couple of months.”