Who has been our player of the season thus far?

[ctay]

Difficult one but thought Duffy May have had a few shouts

[River Don]

Wellens, Brown, Turnbull, Keegan, Copps, not a bad group of players is it? It's just been a matter of getting them all fit and all on the pitch at the same time. Chuck in the likes of Husband, Forrester and Sharp all properly fit again and we look a half decent outfit.

[bedale rover]

Khumalo wellens turnbull

[Capmeister]

Red Army.

Watch him carefully. It's not just about bravery and hard work. He has a sublime football brain. Watch him when he is fit, the way he judges when to hold the ball, when to lay it off, when to flick it to a supporting player. If you don't see that, you don't understand football.

There was a moment against Blackburn early this season that was reminiscent of van Nistelrooj at his best. He won a long ball from the back with the centre half trying to flatten him. Took the ball down close to the touch line. The centre half had him in his pocket, harrying him out of play. No support in sight. Nowhere to go. Then Brown did a Cruyff turn on a sixpence and was away behind the back line. A joy to see. Best moment of football in the entire season. And his vision and execution for the move that led to Sharp winning a penalty against  Charlton was the second best.

We are privileged to have a player like him playing for us. A worker with a football brain. They come along rarely.

Every fan likes to see commitment in British footballers, it's part of our appreciation of the work ethic. Brown embraces that very well and I think he has stood out pretty much for that reason. I think the use of the term "sublime footballing brain" is pushing it somewhat. Now if you attributed that to Wellens I'd certainly concur. I'm not sure which match he did it in now but the flick that he returned to Coppinger which is on U tube drops Wellens in that catergory. A tad more pace and he would have had England international written all over him.

Whilst this may sound harsh, Brown is a journeyman of this division. He's had a couple of tilts at the top flight, most notably with Sunderland I think and been found wanting. As a few others have pointed out on this thread, he doesn't score enough and there have been a few clear misses. Strikers are gauged by how often they hit the onion bag. Even Big Bren weighed in with more goals consistently than Brown. That said he'd get my vote but reserve the subliminality for the ball players, Wellens, Coppinger and probably more latterly Tamas.

[Donnywolf]

I would say Ross Turnbull just in case he has just won a Meal for 2 Voucher in Lottery AND he has nobody in mind for the other side of the table !

[BillyStubbsTears]

Brown's career record is 3 goals every 10 starts that equates to 15 goals in a full season of league games plus the odd cup match. That is a perfectly respectable total for any striker. He's scored 20 goals in 66 starts for us since returning, which is a perfectly respectable total.

So he missed chances? Show me the striker who doesn't. It comes with the territory. For me, a striker who scores at that rate AND leads the line physically AND is the best player in the squad at bringing other players into the game is something to cherish.

Someone suggested that Coppinger is more deserving of being described as being a sublime footballer. Perhaps he is more sublime in his basic skill, but that is not what I was talking about. Brown's ability to choose the correct ball AND execute it while having a centre half up his arse is second to none among any Rovers player I have ever seen.

[Filo]

I have to say, when we re signed Brown, I wasn't impressed, I described him as a journeyman, I was wrong, perhaps his injuries over the years influenced that opinion, since he's got over those injury problems we've seen a grafting player with quick feet and an eye for a pass, long may it continue