Brisbane premiership captain Harris Andrews has conceded that replacing star lockdown defender Brandon Starcevich won't be a one-man job.
Starcevich defected to West Coast in the off-season after playing in the last two premierships, locking down Tom Papley and Patrick Dangerfield, respectively, in the grand finals.
"It's hard because ‘Starce' in my eyes is the number one small defender in the league and brought so much to the footy club," Andrews told Zero Hanger.
“We're obviously going to miss him because he spent eight years at our footy club and was an unbelievable teammate. We're still tinkering around with how we go about it.”
Andrews anointed Noah Answerth and Shadeau Brain as potential replacements, while emphasising that expecting anyone to carry the entire load Starcevich carried was unrealistic.
Answerth, a 2024 premiership winner, played the first 17 games of 2025 before rupturing his Achilles, and has a doughty nature to him.
Brain, meanwhile, has flexibility and will be keen to add to the nine games he played in 2024 after spending 2025 in the VFL.
Third-year pair Zane Zakostelsky and Luke Lloyd will also be hungry, having failed to break through for a debut so far.
Keidean Coleman, meanwhile, has managed just one game in each of the past two years so will be another handy addition.
"There's plenty of options but collectively we'll have to carry the load a bit because it's hard to replicate exactly what 'Starce' does because he's so good at it - he knows how to stay with the best small forwards - but we've got some things in place to be able to help those guys," Andrews said.
The 29-year-old also poured praise on second-year player Levi Ashcroft.
After playing every game last year, predominantly as a winger, Ashcroft is vying for more midfield minutes in 2026.
"Levi is setting the world on fire," Andrews said.
"He's always looking to improve. He's knocking on the door for midfield minutes and we've got a lot of guys who can roll through there so there will be a little bit of sacrifice.
"He's been really impressive with his skills in the match sim and practice matches.
"We've got so much depth in the midfield so everyone has to put their egos on the hook and try and get the best result for the team. It will be an interesting juggling act but we've got a selfless group in there who want the best result for us."
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