Is this the strangest accent in footy? See if you can pick where GWS rising star Callum Brown comes from
- Callum Brown doesn’t sound like any other AFL player
- The rising star found foot fame in an unusual way
- Brown’s five-goal haul helped GWS beat Collingwood
Callum Brown made an excellent start to the AFL season for GWS Giants with a career-high five goals against Collingwood, but his unusual accent left some footy fans scratching their heads.
The 23-year-old rising star was born in England but moved to Northern Ireland at the age of five, where he developed an interest in football and rugby.
Brown emerged as a Gaelic football star as a teenager before GWS talent scouts saw him in action.
His physicality and athleticism on the field quickly set him apart from his peers, and he was signed by GWS as an international rookie via the 2018 AFL draft when he was 18 years old.
Brown spent several years developing his game with the club’s reserves before a string of excellent performances earned his call-up to the senior team in 2021.
GWS emerging talent Callum Brown (pictured second from left after the side’s victory over Collingwood on Saturday) was born in England and grew up in Ireland
The 23-year-old emerged as a Gaelic football star as a teenager before being spotted by Giants scouts
When you hear him talk, you hear hints of his time in England and Australia creeping into his Irish accent.
“I had absolutely no idea anyone was here, no friends or family, I always wanted to experience something new,” Brown said. News Corp in 2023.
“The Giants wanted to take me, so I jumped in without any hesitation.
‘I wanted to do something professional and use my sportsmanship.’
The transition from Gaelic football to Australian rules came naturally to Brown, but reaching the elite level was not easy.
“I think the coaches probably didn’t pick up on what kind of person I was from the start, I was very relaxed and laid back,” Brown said.
‘It may seem like I didn’t want to be there, but I actually loved it.
‘I knew I had the qualities, but I probably needed more feeling for my feet. Maybe I just didn’t put in the effort they wanted me to.
“It was a real kick-up, there have been a few over the years. Serious conversations in the conference rooms with the coaches and Jason McCartney – ‘What are you doing? We know you have it, but you don’t show it’.
‘It clicked in my head. This is exactly what I want in my life, so I need to put more effort into it.”
Brown was called up to the senior squad in 2021 and seems to be improving with every game
If the Giants can continue their excellent run of form dating back to the middle of last year, Brown might just be the fourth Irishman to be part of an AFL premiership squad.
“To be honest, all I ever thought about was winning,” he said AFL.com.au.
“It would be nice to win it in front of everyone at home obviously, because I know everyone will support me and that pushes me to do it even more.
‘That’s what Ireland is all about. Once you play for a team, they are all for it and yes, it would be special, a special moment.”