Demon Ben Brown pondered retirement following nine knee surgeries

He made a triumphant return for the Demons in round 1, but spearhead Ben Brown was almost not on an AFL field in 2024, as a nagging knee injury came close to ending his career.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 17: Ben Brown of the Demons celebrates a win with fans during the 2024 AFL Round 01 match between the Melbourne Demons and the Western Bulldogs at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on March 17, 2024 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Melbourne veteran forward Ben Brown has revealed he has undergone nine surgeries on his battered left knee and is playing every game like it his last.

Brown went under the knife again over summer to remove some floating cartilage and said he sought medical advice on whether he should retire towards the end of last year.

But the premiership big man says his left knee is “feeling great” after the latest clean-out, fuelling hopes the 31-year-old can have a meaningful impact in attack this year.

Brown was recalled to the team in Sunday’s win over the Western Bulldogs as part of a reshuffle which sent Tom McDonald to the back line as Melbourne bared its new attacking teeth.

Brown said he was desperate to stay in the team despite the looming return of Harry Petty and was enjoying football as much as ever despite the club’s turbulent summer.

Ben Brown has overcome plenty with a dodgy knee. Photo by Michael Klein.

But he said there was a period last year where he considered whether he should retire due to his persistent knee problems which limited him to seven games last season.

“Towards the back end of last year I did (consider retirement), just because of how the knee was behaving, so we had some conversations,” Brown said.

“I had some professional advice and that was that I could keep going, and that was all I needed to hear.

“Julian Feller said look, considering the amount of surgeries you have had, this looks remarkably stable.

“Another pre-season down I feel like I’m enjoying my footy as much as I ever have right now, so I’m having fun with it and looking forward to a really exciting year.”

Brown was overlooked in the finals last year in favour of McDonald and Josh Schache due to the knee problems which flared up again over summer, causing more swelling and pain.

But after a successful six-week rehabilitation Brown said he wants to show he can still perform at the top level and would not rule out trying to play on beyond this season if his form permits.

“You put everything into it when you look at it (like every game is his last), so it’s probably not a bad thing,” he said.

“I feel like I am never out of it (the play), I keep going. If it means I play a few more years that is great. If not I think I will have got everything out of myself that I could.”

Brown returned to Melbourne’s team on Sunday. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

Brown, who has finished top-three in the Coleman Medal race three times, booted two goals from six marks and nine disposals as the Demons comfortably toppled the Dogs at the MCG.

The former Kangaroo hailed the performance of Clayton Oliver after taking time away from the club saying, saying the blistering onballer’s ability was “unmatched”.

“I have probably got to know Clayton a lot better over the last six to 12 months and I just love the person that he is,” Brown said.

“The journey he is on isn’t necessarily over. The fact that he is out there playing footy I think is awesome for him.”

Brown said the work Melbourne had been doing on its forward conversion would hold the club in good stead this season.

“There has been a lot of talk about our forward line and we have to bear the brunt of that as forwards, but it does take the whole team to move the ball forward,” he said.

“We want to give ourselves more options going forward, we don’t want to be one-dimensional going forward.”