KEY MAN: John Worsfold and West Coast were desperate to hold onto key defender Mitch Brown. Picture: Wayne Ludbey Source: Herald Sun
WEST Coast coach John Worsfold says the club could not afford to let Mitch Brown go home because a lack of key defensive depth could have sabotaged the club's 2013 premiership tilt.
But despite West Coast insisting contracted Brown was not up for trade, it is understood the Eagles were prepared to let him go to St Kilda, as long as they could secure a replacement key defender through a three-way deal.
But Essendon backman Cale Hooker, a 24-year-old East Fremantle product who has played 66 games for the Bombers, refused to return home, scuttling Brown's wish to shift to the Saints.
Brown's manager, Liam Pickering, said yesterday he believed a three-way deal involving Brown, Hooker and Jamie Cripps was over the line on Thursday night.
Worsfold spoke to Brown, who is holidaying overseas, by telephone on Friday afternoon and said the powerful utility was "really positive" about remaining with the Eagles next season.
"He saw an opportunity to be in the starting 18 at another club, along with an attractive contract offer, but he also understood that we wouldn't let him go at the cost of our squad being massively depleted and at risk of not being able to achieve what it can achieve next year," Worsfold said.
Brown played just eight games as a fill-in key defender this season, with Darren Glass, Eric Mackenzie and Will Schofield preferred ahead of him.
But given Glass turns 32 next season and the Eagles have limited developing tall defensive options, Brown, 23, is viewed as important for the future. His upbeat attitude, despite being repeatedly dropped to the WAFL, helped him earn the Chris Mainwaring Medal as best clubman at the West Coast club champion awards three weeks ago.
The following day Brown requested a trade back to his home state of Victoria for more opportunity.
Worsfold said he hoped Brown would re-sign with the Eagles beyond next season, when his current deal expires.
"Mitch is very comfortable," Worsfold said. "He loves the club.
"We would love to have him here and play a lot of games and be a life member and hopefully a premiership player at this footy club. I'm confident if he stays he can achieve those things."
Essendon's list manager Adrian Dodoro praised Hooker's loyalty after he knocked back a deal to join West Coast.
"We got an offer late (Thursday) night for Cale and to his credit he didn't want to leave Essendon," Dodoro said.
St Kilda was seething after missing out on Brown, given they facilitated a request from Cripps to return to his home state and join the Eagles in a trade involving draft picks.
"Like Mitch Brown wanting to return home, we were compassionate that Jamie wanted to return to Western Australia. Our preference for Jamie was to stay at the club, but he made it clear he wanted to be home with family,'' Saints head of football Chris Pelchen said.
"We made several offers to West Coast in the last couple of hours to try and get Mitch across the line."
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