Simon Brown

Career Born in Wednesbury, West Midlands, Brown grew up as an Aston Villa supporter. He was educated at Wood Green High School and while playing football for their school side, he was spotted by West Bromwich Albion and was signed on by the club at the age of 11. He returned to West Brom in May 2004, having scored twice in eight appearances at Kidderminster. He went to Kidderminster on loan for a second time in July 2004 and made 14 appearances before breaking a bone in his leg in October 2004. He made one more appearance for Kidderminster in the following month and then joined Mansfield Town in December 2004 on an 18-month contract for an initial fee of £50,000 and made 21 appearances in the remainder of the 2004–05 season for Mansfield, scoring two goals.

Brown had a fine 2005–06 season and was Mansfield's second leading scorer behind Richie Barker with 12 goals before his season was ended by a hernia operation in April 2006. He was offered a new contract in July 2006 and made 40 appearances in the 2006–07 season, scoring five goals. He was offered a further contract in May 2007 and in November scored a hat-trick in 14 minutes, the fastest in the club's history, as Mansfield beat Macclesfield Town 5–0, which earned him a place in the League Two team of the week. After Mansfield Town were relegated to the Conference Premier at the end of the 2007–08 season, he was released by the club. Brown had made over 120 appearances in all competitions for Mansfield. In November 2008 he joined Rushden & Diamonds on loan until January 2009. He made his debut in a 4–0 victory over Altrincham and returned to Wrexham following the expiry of the loan on 5 January, making three appearances for Rushden.

He was involved in a controversy when he wrote a message on the Facebook profile of Wrexham teammate Christian Smith, which regarded Wes Baynes's contract situation at the club, and caused an angry reaction by the fans. Following the completion of his loan spell at Rushden, he was set to join York City on loan. The move was completed on 15 January, when he signed for the rest of the 2008–09 season. He made his debut in a 3–0 victory against Lewes on 17 January as a right midfielder. He featured as a striker as part of a 4-3-3 formation in a 1–1 draw with Altrincham on 27 January. He joined Tamworth on a month's loan on 13 November, making nine appearances before returning to Wrexham in January 2010. On 11 March 2010, he was released from his contract at Wrexham by mutual consent after failing to make a first team appearance for the club all season. He later joined Eastwood Town and made his debut in a 2–1 defeat to Workington.

Career statistics Updated 1 April 2009.

A. The "League" column constitutes appearances and goals (including those as a substitute) in the Football League and Football Conference. B. The "Other" column constitutes appearances and goals (including those as a substitute) in the Football League Trophy.