Riley Brown (born 15 October 1984) is an Australian former professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

footballer who last played for the

Gold Coast Titans The Gold Coast Titans are a professional rugby league football club, based on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL), Australia and New Zealand's national rugby league club competition. The ...

in the

National Rugby League The National Rugby League (NRL) is an Australasian rugby league club competition which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory and New Zealand. The NRL formed in 1998 as a joint partnership ...

(NRL). He primarily played as a Hooker.

Background

Brown was born in

Bundaberg Bundaberg is a city in the Bundaberg Region, Queensland, Australia, and is the tenth largest city in the state. Bundaberg's regional area has a population of 70,921, and is a major centre of the Wide Bay–Burnett geographical region. The Bun ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. He was raised in the town of

Singleton, New South Wales Singleton is a town on the banks of the Hunter River in New South Wales, Australia. Singleton is 197 km (89 mi) north-north-west of Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city ...

where, at 17 years of age, he represented

Singleton Greyhounds Group 21 Rugby League is a local rugby league competition, run under the control of the Country Rugby League. It covers the Upper Hunter area of New South Wales, and has three divisions, first grade, reserves and Under 18s. For sponsorship reaso ...

at first team level.

Playing career

Brown made his NRL debut on 4 April 2004, for the

Newcastle Knights The Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. They compete in Australasia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership. Playing in red and blue, th ...

against the

St George Illawarra Dragons The St. George Illawarra Dragons is an Australian professional rugby league football club, representing both the Illawarra and St George regions of New South Wales. The club has competed in the National Rugby League since 1999 after a joint- ...

WIN Stadium Wollongong Showground, known as WIN Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-purpose stadium located in Wollongong, Australia. The stadium was officially opened in 1911. From 1982 until 1998 it played host to every home match for the Illawa ...

. Brown made 7 appearances for Newcastle the following season as the club finished last on the table claiming the wooden spoon. After playing 40 games for the Knights, Brown was told to look elsewhere after coach Brian Smith's clean-out midway through the 2007 season. Brown was signed by the

Sydney Roosters The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby league, Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won ...

for the 2008 season. In his first game for the Roosters, Brown infamously injured South Sydney player

Craig Wing Craig Wing (born 26 December 1979), also known by the nickname of "Wingy", is an Australian-born former professional rugby league and rugby union footballer. He began his career in rugby league, playing for the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the S ...

in the 8th minute of the match with a shoulder charge into Wing's back while Wing was being held up by two other players. Brown was not charged over the incident. Brown broke his arm in the Roosters' 2008 qualifying final loss to the

Brisbane Broncos The Brisbane Broncos Rugby League Football Club Ltd., commonly referred to as the Broncos, is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Brisbane, Queensland. Founded in April 1987, the Broncos play in Australia's elite com ...

. He did not return to the NRL until round 21, 2009. Brown made a total of 6 appearances in 2009 as the

had a horrid season on the field finishing with the wooden spoon. Brown joined the

in 2010. Brown's last game in first grade was a 16–12 loss against Manly in Round 10 2011. At the end of 2011, Brown was released from the club as the Gold Coast finished with the wooden spoon. It was the players third wooden spoon in his career.

Personal life

On 2 June 2000, Brown's mother Judith was murdered in her Anna Bay home. Brown's father, Ross, was convicted of the crime but Brown believes that his father is innocent.

References

External links

NRL profile

Sydney Roosters Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Riley 1984 births Living people Australian rugby league players Cessnock Goannas players Gold Coast Titans players Newcastle Knights players Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league hookers Rugby league locks Rugby league players from Bundaberg Rugby league second-rows Sydney Roosters players