He’s seen off the father and now Essendon defender Dustin Fletcher will have to contend with Michael Brennan’s son in Saturday night’s AFL match against West Coast at Etihad Stadium.

Fletcher played four matches against former Eagles vice-captain Brennan in the mid-90s, with the last of them being West Coast’s qualifying final loss in 1995.

Brennan retired just one week later, but the name has been resurrected at West Coast following last week’s debut of father-son selection Jacob Brennan in the club’s 25-point victory over North Melbourne.

Fletcher has notched 353 games for the Bombers in a career spanning 20 years.

The 37-year-old’s teammates have included father-son pairing Tim and Jobe Watson, and the family theme will continue this weekend when Fletcher fronts up against Jacob Brennan.

Given they are both defenders, Fletcher and Brennan are unlikely to cross paths for any great length of time on Sunday.

But the 22-year-old Eagle revealed he had admired the Bombers great from a young age.

“I’ve seen a couple of clips of Dustin Fletcher’s highlights and dad was in them,” Jacob Brennan said this week.

“But I can’t actually remember them (from the original moment). I think I was three.

“Fletcher’s obviously been a very successful AFL player over such a long time, and he’s a defender, so you look and learn from players like him.

“He’s got those long arms – my arms are pretty long I think. And he’s a very good reader of the play, so that’s something to pick up from him.”

Brennan tallied 11 possessions in a solid debut against the Kangaroos.

And with Will Schofield still suspended and Ash Smith unlikely to return from an ankle injury, Brennan is almost certain to hold his spot this week.

West Coast midfielder Koby Stevens currently wears Michael Brennan’s old No.14, and Jacob said he wasn’t going to wrestle it off his teammate any time soon.

“I won’t be pressuring Koby. I think he’d beat me up if I put him in a headlock,” Brennan said with a laugh.

Eagles ruckman Nic Naitanui (hamstring) and Adam Selwood (hand) are doubtful starters against the Bombers, while goalsneak Ashton Hams accepted a two-match ban for engaging in rough conduct against Andrew Swallow.