Jonathan Brown retires following head knock

Veteran Brisbane Lions forward and captain Jonathan Brown has announced his retirement from AFL football, effective at the end of the 2014 season.

One of the all-time greats for Brisbane, Brown has kicked 594 goals in 256 appearances, putting him 31st on the list of goal kickers in the AFL.

Brown has enjoyed a star-studded career, including three premiership flags back-to-back from 2001-2003, and he has captained the Lions from 2009-2013, with Jed Adcock taking over the role in 2014

The three-time premiership player has been battling a head knock suffered against Greater Western Sydney two weekends ago, and was ruled out of the Lions’ latest match against Fremantle due to the concussion.

The 32-year-old would have had to pass a concussion test if he was to play this weekend against North Melbourne, but has instead chosen to call an end to his career.

Browns fearless attack on the footy has earned him the respect of not just his own teammates, but of players and fans throughout the entire AFL community.

Unfortunately, in recent seasons, his attacking nature has also resulted in a string of gruesome head knocks that have left him with injuries more reminiscent of a pub brawl than something you would sustain on a sports field.

Calls for Brown to retire began to surface following his latest injury. Throughout the decision making process, Lions officials made it clear that Brown would not be pressured to play on.

The sentiment from the AFL community mirrored the club’s view that Brown should retire if he felt the time was right, and that he owed the club and its fans nothing.

Speaking to the Media on Monday, Brown stated: “It is a difficult time, but also a happy time upon reflection. If I could have been offered 15 years when I first arrived… I would have took(sic) it in a heartbeat.”

“It has become evident that I don’t bounce back like I used to bounce back from these hits.

“Pretty strong medical advice this week is that it was in me(sic) best interests to stop. It’s been a hard pill to swallow, even though deep down in side I probably knew that was the right answer.

“It would have been my last season anyway, so it wasn’t worth the risk of going out there and copping another head knock.

“I’m very content with it, looking forward to the future.

“The desire to play footy was still there, but at the end of the day I think it is the right time to hang up the boots. You could always play that one more game, but it only takes one instance to cause some serious damage.

“You have to consider the future and I’ve spent some time with Kylie and the kids over the past few days and that underlined for me some of the most important things in life.

“What Leppa said about ‘not owing the Club anything’ really hit home with me and definitely helped make the decision easier.

Brown will remain in the fold at Brisbane for the rest of the 2014 season, playing a mentor role for the Lions’ young playing group.

Jonathan Brown fact file
* Born: October 29 1981
* Age: 32
* Height: 195cm
* Weight: 103kg
* Recruited from: South Warrnambool/Geelong U-18
* Played seniors for South Warrnambool at 15
* Family: father Brian and uncles Noel Mugavin and Billy Picken played VFL/AFL
* Drafted under father-son rule at No.30 overall in 1999
* Debut: 2000
* Games: 256
* Goals: 594 (club record)
* 2014: 21 goals in 11 games
* Premiership sides: 2001, 2002, 2003
* Best and fairest awards: 2007, 2008, 2009
* Club leading goalkicker: 2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013
* Leadership: was co-captain or captain 2007-2013
* Biggest bag in a game: 10 goals v Carlton in 2007 (club record)
* Biggest goalkicking season: booted 85 in 2009
* All-Australian selection: 2007, 2009
* Coleman Medal: 2007 with 77 goals
* AFL Mark of the Year: 2002
* AFL Players’ Association best captain: 2007, 2009
* AFLPA most courageous player: 2007, 2008, 2011