[4] Brown responded by scoring a hat-trick in a practice match and some years later reflected:[5] The very first time I stepped foot inside the Hawthorns as a 15-year-old schoolboy, I knew this was the club for me.

It was the best decision I've ever made in my life.Brown joined West Bromwich Albion as an apprentice professional on 13 April 1961, earning a wage of £6 a week.

Eddie Readfern was unable to participate in the game due to illness, which meant that Brown was given his league debut, just a few days before his 18th birthday; his equalising goal helped Albion to a 2–1 away win.

[9] He was selected sporadically by Albion manager Jimmy Hagan during the remainder of 1963–64 and finished the campaign on five goals in thirteen appearances.

[11] Brown became a regular first team player during the early part of the 1964–65 campaign, appearing in Albion's first 12 league games of the season.

[14] At the start of the 1965–66 season, Brown was still playing in the reserves, but an injury to Clive Clark in September 1965 gave him the opportunity to reclaim his first team place.

[17] Albion were taking part in the competition for the first time, after the FA offered the winners a place in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup.

[18] Brown became the first player to score in every round of the League Cup,[A] including a hat-trick in the semi-final, second leg against Peterborough United.

This time however, Brown was on the losing side as Albion lost 3–2 to Third Division Queens Park Rangers, having led 2–0 at half-time.

In 1970–71 Brown was the leading scorer in Division One with 28 goals,[24] and was rewarded with his only full England cap on 19 May 1971, playing in a goalless draw against Wales at Wembley.

He played a major role in Albion's return to the top flight in 1976, scoring the goal that clinched promotion in a 1–0 win away at his home town club Oldham Athletic.

[citation needed] In 17 years at the Hawthorns, Brown had broken both the appearance and goalscoring records for the Baggies, scoring 218 goals in 574 league games.

Brown was named as one of West Bromwich Albion's 16 greatest players in a poll organised as part of the club's 125th anniversary celebrations in 2004.