Daisy Brown (Brisbane Roar)

19-year-old Daisy Brown has made her mark in pre-season for Brisbane Roar after putting pen to paper for the Queensland outfit. The attacker has her roots firmly established in the heart of Queensland, having recently capped off seven years with QAS by taking out the Sue Monteath Award for Football Queensland’s QAS 2025 Player of the Year.

She has been the focal point of attacks for QAS in NPL QLD in 2025 especially, capable of a wide variety of shots and finishes, underlined by a superb headed finish in Roar’s pre-season game against a Singapore All Stars that showcased her aerial prowess.

Brown’s preferred position, in her own words, is as a number nine, though her skill set allows her to operate anywhere across the forward line and potentially even deeper in central or holding midfield roles. This positional flexibility is underpinned by her ability to dictate play, distribute the ball wide to advancing wingers, and initiate attacks from central areas. Frequently deployed in a front three at QAS, she has demonstrated a strong understanding of spacing and tempo, particularly when linking midfield to attack.

Leading the line as a lone striker, Brown often drops into deeper pockets to receive between the lines, drawing opposition centre-backs out of position and disrupting defensive structures. This movement regularly creates space for wide runners to cut inside or exploit high defensive lines. In these moments, Brown uses her body intelligently, protecting the ball and making it difficult for defenders to regain possession once she has established goal-side positioning.

What sets Brown apart though is her positivity on the ball. Even when dropping deep, she is always aiming to play a progressive pass up the pitch or out wide to the wingers which advance her team’s attacking position. More often than not she would aim to hold off the defender - or spin - and bring others into play rather than opting for a simple touch back to a teammate. 

She can be a constant problem for opposition defences, drifting into half-spaces regardless of whether she starts as a nine, a central attacking midfielder, or slightly deeper. While Brown is capable of delivering the decisive final pass herself, much of her value comes in the build-up to goals. She is likely to accumulate a high number of pre-assists, often releasing wingers into space for low, driven crosses across the face of goal.

Put simply, Brown can turn a speculative or broken passage of play into a sustained attacking phase through her composure, technical security, and passing range. She also possesses a varied finishing repertoire and is comfortable shooting with either foot from distance, adding a layer of unpredictability for defenders who must account for both her shooting threat and her ability to slide through-balls into runners. 

Brown appears to have a high level of football intelligence. She is frequently first to loose balls in the opposition half and shows an advanced ability to scan and select the right option quickly. Her timing of arrivals into the box is particularly notable, often finding space at the back post or across the six-yard box, and she could reasonably consider herself unlucky not to have exceeded her return of six goals in the 2025 NPLW QLD campaign.

It will be intriguing to see how Brisbane Roar deploy Brown this season given the range of roles she has performed for QAS. Much may depend on squad balance and injuries, but her versatility across the attacking unit makes her a strong option from the bench at minimum. With regular minutes, Brown has the tools to push for a starting role and could develop into a valuable multi-functional attacker at A-League Women level.