Kevin Brown says life at Warrington has made him 'feel alive again'
Wednesday 8 March 2017 15:36, UK
Warrington announced the signing of Widnes' Kevin Brown in December last year, a move that angered Vikings fans.
The stand-off told the media he took a pay-cut for the move, but it did nothing to stem the reaction of the disgruntled supporters of his former club.
Brown said he understood why the Vikings fans were unhappy with him, but that he spoke to as many people within the organisation as he could before the announcement was made.
"I was away at the time, so I didn't get the chance to speak to a lot of people and tell them that I was leaving," Brown told Sky Sports. "It all came out while I was away.
Going to Warrington was for nights like that, and I didn't just want to take part, I wanted to perform and feel like I belong on that stage.
"I spoke to my close friends at Widnes and my coaches, and left on good terms with the board and directors - everyone thanked me for what I'd done there and I thanked them so that was all good.
"Obviously some fans were upset because I'd gone to the biggest rival and they instantly hated me for my decision.
"I could understand that, I've been a fan myself; I supported Wigan when I was a young lad and if someone had gone to St Helens - one of my heroes - I would have been upset."
The 32-year-old says the nature of sport and subsequent reaction of the fans ensures all the feedback he receives is kept in perspective.
"If you're playing well they sing your name, if you're playing poorly they sing your name but they put a few choice words at the end of it," he said.
"I've been around long enough to understand that it's all part of the sport. If you get too obsessed with what people think of you then you're going to struggle because at some stage someone's going to come along who doesn't speak highly of you.
"So as much as the compliments are appreciated, I tend not to listen because at the same time someone's saying you're not that good.
"The older I've got and the more mature and experienced I've got, I just make sure that what I'm doing is appreciated by my coach and my team-mates, and if I can do that then I'm happy."
Great start
Brown did not have long to settle into matters at Warrington - his first outing was against the Broncos in the first match of the World Club Series. Warrington were in a destructive mood, thrashing the NRL side 27-18 after going at a rate of a point-a-minute in the opening quarter.
"There was a lot of pressure on me coming into such a big club, and straight away we went into the World Club Series, so it started off great by beating Brisbane.
"We spoke in the week about how they're a very good side, but at the same time they're not invincible and if we could do what we do, and do it at our best, then we should expect to get in front and make it count.
"We did just that - we got out the blocks and hit them hard and fast. We got to 20-0 and there was no coming back for Brisbane."
The England international says it was refreshing to have a big challenge immediately in front of him in 2017.
"I said to my wife when I was leaving for the game, 'I haven't been this nervous for a while'.
"I felt alive again. Being at Widnes, I absolutely loved every minute but it was a different type of feeling; it was scratching around and trying to compete, whereas this was the cream of the crop who we were playing against.
"Going to Warrington was for nights like that, and I didn't just want to take part, I wanted to perform and feel like I belong on that stage."
'The pressure is intense'
After the high of beating the NRL side, Warrington have struggled to replicate that form domestically. Tony Smith's side have slipped to three successive defeats in Super League, but Brown says there is no panic within the camp, despite the expectation from outside the club.
"The pressure is intense," said Brown. "You're expected to win every game at Warrington.
"I'm under no illusions, we could have been better and we should have had more points on the league table by now, but at the same time I haven't lost any confidence in what we can achieve this year.
"There's factors that are going against us at the moment with injuries, illness and the birth of children. We aren't making any excuses but when we do get all our players on the field we'll really start playing well then, and I don't think any team will look forward to playing Warrington Wolves."
On Thursday the Wolves come up against the Warriors at the Halliwell Jones Stadium. Wigan beat Cronulla to complete a Super League clean-sweep in the World Club Series, but unlike the Wolves, Wigan have gone unbeaten in Super League.
Despite the form that is stacked against his side, Brown says he is relishing the chance of going up again Shaun Wane's side.
"I grew up supporting Wigan, I lived in Wigan and my little lad will probably support Wigan when he's older," Brown added.
Live Betfred Super League
"I've got a lot of respect for Shaun Wane and his team, they're obviously the best team at the world at the moment which is a reason to be proud.
"I absolutely love playing against them. You know you're going to have to be physical, they're going to come at you hard, and if you win the game you know you deserve the points because they don't hand you the points - they never play poorly.
"For me, I love that test. I really enjoyed going there with Widnes and was pretty successful with Widnes over the last couple of years where we won a lot more than we lost against Wigan, so hopefully I can bring a bit of the experience of beating Wigan a few times over to Warrington.
"We've been the underdogs once this year and performed to our best. Hopefully we can potentially go into this as favourites and if that can bring out the best in us again that will be great.
"I'm sure it will be a fantastic game for the viewers."
