Brown was born in the Longfleet Street Mary parish of Poole and had represented the Dorset County Field Artillery In March 1910, he was invited to The Dell for a trial. Considered "up to scratch", he took the place of Horace Glover at left-back (Glover had moved to centre-forward in the absence of Charlie McGibbon) for the Southern League match at Bristol Rovers on 26 March 1910.
His full-time occupation was as a fisherman. Described as "tall, weighty and muscular", Brown played well enough to earn another match, a week later, at home to Norwich City. Despite acquitting himself well in his two first-team appearances, Brown decided to abandon his football career and resume his profession as a fisherman, although he continued to play for his local club, earning a trial with the England amateur team in January 1911.
