North Melbourne forward Ben Brown says former Western Bulldog and new Roos recruit Nathan Hrovat has similar qualities to that of the AFL games record holder Brent Harvey.

Harvey played 432 games for North over his entire career, and was one of the more dominant midfield/forward players over the past 30 years.

He averaged 21.3 disposals a game and was an elite user of the football, with his delivery inside 50 one of his best traits.

On the other hand, Hrovat has played just 40 games of AFL football over four seasons, but has finally found continuity having featured in every match for North in 2017 after making the move over the off-season.

The 175cm and 78kg midfielder shares a similar build to Harvey, and Brown believes that's not the only thing that reminds him of his former teammate.

"I love having 'Rat' in the team,"Brown said.

"His ball use is awesome going inside 50, which definitely makes things easier for me when I'm leading out of the goal square I know he's going to put it right out in front.

"That's something that's a little bit Brent Harvey-like.

"Having Boomer in the team the last few years, you knew exactly where the ball would be kicked right out in front and I think Nathan Hrovat is in a similar vein."