Essendon great Tim Watson is backing Zach Merrett to get past his failed trade to the Hawks and return to his best, while another ex-Bombers captain has warned against stripping him of the role.
The Bombers skipper and six-time best and fairest winner was one of the biggest stories from trade deadline day, with Hawthorn failing to come up with an offer to prise Merrett out of Essendon.
Hawthorn's best offer finished on picks 10 and 22, a future first-round pick and Henry Hustwaite, while the Bombers were reportedly holding out for additional first and second-round selections.
MORE: Grading every club's trade period
Speaking on SEN, Watson backed the club's hardline stance.
"I'm not comfortable with the way it played out because it goes to the heart of your football club and how it's operating at the time when your captain wants to get out," Watson said.
"There's a lot of work to be done to repair that relationship between him and the club.
"I don't think that he's fallen out with any individual in particular, but in terms of the club, he just didn't feel like it was going to be able to deliver the success that he wants to have as a player.
"There's a relationship now that needs to be built. I think they need to listen to each other about the concerns that he has.
"I like the fact that the club took a really strong stand in all of this."
Merrett, 30, is contracted for two more seasons, although his manager Tom Petroro has reportedly threatened Essendon with another trade request next season.
It remains to be seen whether Merrett will retain the captaincy, however James Hird has warned against any drastic moves when asked if he should be stripped.
"No I don't [think Merrett should be stripped of the captaincy]," Hird said on Footy Furnace.
"I think he can still be captain, it's going to take a lot of work and he's going to have to walk back into the Essendon Football Club and mend some bridges.
"He's clearly the best player, and that's not the be all and end all of being the captain, but he's clearly the leader of the group, the emotional leader of the group.
"He needs win his players back on side and obviously he and his coach need to see eye-to-eye going forward.
"I think he can [retain the captaincy], but not without a lot of work.
"I think it's dangerous if he's not. You've got a guy who's clearly got a lot of emotional power, he's got a lot of power over the group.
"If he's not [captain] and there's a guy that's there and he's slightly undermining him, that can really hurt.
"Whether he's the captain or not, he needs to buy in with what's going forward, but I still think he can."
Watson is confident the midfielder's professionalism will ensure a smooth reconciliation.
"Zach Merrett is by far Essendon's best player and for them to be able to build and reset their football team, they need to have some good strong quality players around that," Watson said.
"There's nothing in his DNA to suggest that he will drop his bundle and he will not try to be the same professional player that he has been previously and delivering on all the things that he is requested and asked to do.
"You need to address it. You can't ignore this has taken place, I don't know how they go about that. I know Andrew Welsh through this has been telling Zach, 'We love you, we want to keep you.'"
The Bombers now head to the draft with a strong hand of picks 5, 6, 21, 27, 30, 83 and 101, while most players will begin pre-season training in the first half of November.