The name’s ‘Brown, Downtown Brown’!
Derry footballer Callum Brown proudly claimed the moniker when respected Australian television commentator Dwayne Russell introduced the vernacular to the AFL after witnessing Brown’s trademark long-range goal-kicking prowess for the Greater Western Sydney Giants in the AFL this season.
With less than a week to go until he starts his maiden Australian Rules finals campaign when Saint Kilda host GWS in an elimination final on Saturday September 9 at the MCG, Brown is calmness personified in the buildup to the biggest sporting occasion of his life.
“I am the longest kicker at the club, maybe not the best at short kicks, but I’ve worked hard on my long distance kicking from 50-60 metres out so I am happy to be called ‘Downtown Brown,’” he told the Irish News.
“We know we can knock any team off, we know what we are capable of doing, and we have proved that this season.
“All of my focus is now on the Saint Kilda game next week and I am not looking beyond that.
“If we play our best football we can scare any opposition, we can beat any team, and we know we have a chance against the Saints.”
Brown from downtown #AFLNorthGiants pic.twitter.com/K8NIBXpi7R
— AFL (@AFL) June 11, 2023
The Limavady club player reached the All-Ireland U20 football semi-finals before moving across the other side of the world in October 2018.
By his own admission, there was no ‘lightbulb moment’ this year when everything fell into place and he never looked back. While Luton-born Brown, 23, has been in the form of his life for GWS this year, he insists the secret of his success was no secret at all. It was simply hard work and many hours spent learning the key skills and nuances of Australian rules on the training track.
“It’s been a gradual process of taking everything I have learned into each game and trying to play my best footy every week,” Brown explained.
“I now realise that it took two years to complete my development as a rookie when I learned the fundamentals of how to play around the ball, drop the ball perfectly onto my foot, how to handball effectively, and get the best out of myself in every game.
“I’ve been rewarded for all of the extra hours I have put into training, the extra ball work, higher intensity training, and all of the small things that have added up to helping me to improve.
“In my first season in the AFL I transitioned a lot from the backline to the front line and this year my coaches backed my physical attributes and skills to be the right fit for our forward line.”
Read more:
- Callum Brown watching Oak Leaf rise from afar as Limavady man extends AFL stay
- 'There's a bit of spunk about this guy': How young Derry star Callum Brown caught the eye of AFL scouts
- AFL Irish round-up: Callum Brown grabs goal as GWS pull off sensational win over Carlton to book place in AFL finals
Brown also acknowledged the influence of GWS skipper Toby Greene who was recently anointed as captain of the All-Australian (AFL team of the year) team following his stunning 2023 campaign as one of the standout players in the AFL.
“Toby tells me every week what I’ve done well and what I need to work on so I can be the best version of myself,” Brown said.
“His advice means a lot to me and has helped me a lot.”
GWS struggled for consistency in the first half of the home and away season under first-year coach Adam Kingsley this year.
They appeared to be out of finals reckoning and until a remarkable mid-season turn around when they won a club record seven consecutive games for the first time in their history and turned themselves in to finals contenders in the blink of an eye.
2023 was also the season in which Brown, the first Irish recruit in GWS history, was elevated to the Giants senior list, and established himself as a key player for the expansion club.
Overall, Brown has booted 22 goals in 26 senior appearances for GWS since his debut in 2021 when he was on the rookie list.
“It took half a year to learn a new system and for all of us to buy into a new game style,” Brown said.
“We’ve been trying to learn a new way of playing, with the emphasis on moving the footy quickly, and getting the whole team to run quicker off the ball.
“We are all a lot more comfortable with the game plan now and the results have been there to see.”
The former Oak Leaf minor admits his heart is still back home in Derry and at some point he will return to the GAA.
“I still get the text from back home telling me not to come home so I will be successful in Australia,” Brown said.
“But there’s no doubt that every Irish player, wherever they are in the world, always wants to go home.
“Right now, my focus is on the AFL but eventually I will go home.”
