Like it or not, Kevin Brown, as a rugby league player, represents the game of rugby league. When he expresses homophopbia (through lack of sensitivity rather than malice i think it can be agreed in this case) he expresses it not as an individual but as a representative of RL.

The RFL have a duty to make sure that Browns attitude isnt indicative of the game.

Then you thought wrong. He's more than just a rugby player. If that was the case, then off-field issues wouldn't matter. No professional sports person is just a performer.


Why does it matter if your a manager to three staff or not? If people know where you work, and these people are potential customers/investors, and you act like an idiot, then does it affect your business? Would your employers be happy? Whether you think it's right or wrong is irrelevant. There ARE people that think that this kind of behaviour is wrong, and if it's the people you are trying to do business with then it's stupid. The behaviour wouldn't stop me watching him as a player, but it does bother me because there are people that it will bother as it will affect our business. It's called being professional.


Exactly. Even though I did find it funny. He (and I) are not homophobes. It's a light hearted joke. So are a lot of the racist/sexist/ageist/etc. jokes you hear and laugh at. But you shouldn't say them in public to people you don't know that are potential customers when you are in "uniform" (which he always will be as he's a public figure).


There's a difference between the people that think it's not appropriate to say these things at certain times (like myself) and the people that think it's not acceptable full stop (the PC brigade). You'll also get the PC brigade having a pop at my view-point on this saying that I'm bad because I found it funny. It's not black and white. You're not PC or anti-PC. There's a grey bit in the middle. There are boundaries, and people need to know what they are if they like this kind of humour. The "anti-PC brigade" are just as bad as the PC brigade IMO.

It's not all of one or none of one. There's a time and a place.

I sense a tongue in cheek remark but yeah, as an example only, people from Yorkshire get quips about them on here most days and if you tell people you're from there someone will have some gag about it. All absolutely throw away remarks that no one cares about and no one in their right mind could be offended by, but that's the same as this remark and gag Kevin Brown made.

I'm not suggesting that being gay/coming out etc and the attitude some have isn't worse than being from Yorkshire, obviously. But these types of things happen all day and everyday all over and are just little jokes which shouldn't offend anyone, and if it does, let them stick up for themselves.

Kevin Brown's done nothing wrong. He told a joke. Telling jokes is hardly setting a bad example.

No offence, but that's rubbish.

Some remarks are more offensive than others. It's not a case of "this is offensive, this isn't offensive". Some offend a few, some offend none, some offend some but not others, etc. If you think saying that someone from Yorkshire likes to buy wool is as offensive as basically saying that "puffs" are happy to stick anything up their *rse then you're being a bit daft. Brown won't have meant it maliciously in the slightest, don't get me wrong. But not everyone sees it that way, and it can harm the image of the game and our custom.

You don't always hear people's complaints, and some people aren't always in a position to stick up for themselves, so that's not really an appropriate response either. What if he'd have said a joke about severely disabled people?

It's not a massive deal. But it does need addressing. Especially after the RFL have made a deal about homophobia already. It just needs a a warning IMO.

Brown should get a warning letter.......stupid thing to post anywhere.

Bazza.....if the yanks don't like being called yanks...can I suggest "Septics" instead?

Great post, think a few witch hunters on here are getting a bit carried away with themselves and using Brown as a scapegoat for political correctness.

If he had said 'as happy as a pig in ', there wouldn't be umpteen people coming on moaning they know pigs that don't like sh1T and are offended that they are percieved to do so. (Waiting for someone to chirp up about comparing homosexuals to pigs )

If he would have said 'I'm as happy as Larry' there wouldn't be people moaning they know Larry and he is a manic depressive due to the pressure of celebrity for being very happy.


People who want to make a stand for homosexuals need not combat the throwaway comments of a sportsman on twitter but need to do something about the way homosexuals are percieved in the mainstream media, for instance, having Julian Clarey, Graham Norton, 4 poofs and a piano and Paul O'Grady mincing about on TV does a lot more damage to the reputation of homosexuals and causes greater insult in my opinion.

It's called being professional, not politically correct. Professional sportmen are public figures. If they start throwing around daft comments in public (on something as mainstream as Twitter), then they are not being professional and harming their business.

Fella, after your last posting tirade about the history of the game, there's not point in discussing this with you as you have zero credibility

Er... no it didn't. Maybe you should look up the word "discuss"

Another great post.