Brown bids emotional farewell as he flies home to Australia

FA’AMANU Brown has thanked Hull FC fans for their support during his time at the club.

The New Zealand international hooker has returned to Australia on compassionate grounds.

Brown signed a one-year deal with the club for the 2024 season, playing eight games and scoring three tries.

He featured in his favourite hooker position three times and half-back five and was sent off at Warrington in an incident that forced the RFL to amend their framework on accidental head contacts. However, the player has now been granted a release to return home to be with his family, with his partner’s father seriously ill.

“Thank you for all the kind messages,” Brown wrote on his Instagram story. “I’m sorry to everyone for not replying. It’s been a crazy two days of packing my life and heading back home to Australia. I didn’t want to play for another Super League club apart from Hull FC hence why I’m going home. If it was about the money, I would have stayed and collected a paycheck. There is no price for happiness.

“Nothing but love for this beautiful town. There were talks about how bad the city was before coming here, but there are good parts and bad parts of any place. All I saw was the good. The amount of support you fans have given me is something I haven’t experienced before. I’ve made lifelong friends here. The conversations I’ve had from supporters to players are something I won’t forget.

“It’s a tough time for the club, but with any situation, it will only build resilience and strength for the players, staff, and fans. Thank you, FC, for opening your arms to have me here. Time to get home for the next adventure.”