It’s fair to say that Jevani Brown has yet to reach the heights at Exeter City since joining Bristol Rovers in the summer, but the forward has gradually begun to show glimpses of what Gasheads hoped for when the 29-year-old first joined the club.
Brown’s arrival was met with mixed reactions as one of 12 summer signings, 13 if you include the addition of Chris Martin as a free agent in September, for reasons we all know and are aware of and don’t need to delve into. However, there was certainly excitement on the football field.
With 14 goals and nine assists in 32 appearances for Exeter last season, the attacking midfielder would have been a strong contender to dethrone now-teammate Aaron Collins as League One player of the season if his season hadn’t ended in January.
Brown had also played a key role in Exeter’s promotion to League One the year before, as Exeter were promoted alongside Rovers. That promotion, of course, was overseen by new Gas CEO Matt Taylor.
When reports first surfaced that Taylor was of interest to Rovers and that initial talks had begun, the most frequently mentioned point was Brown and how bringing in the former Exeter manager would help the summer signing finally find form after a difficult start to life with the Gas.
Two goals and three assists in 22 appearances is nowhere near as prolific as the attacking midfielder has been at this level in the past, but there have been glimpses of his creative qualities and swagger in the final third, and the hope now is that his former manager can unlock his brilliance.
The 29-year-old discussed his relationship with the manager and working with him again ahead of this weekend’s trip to Bolton Wanderers, saying: “I worked with the gaffer for about 18 months.” We have a great relationship. I think I played my best football while he was my manager. I just have a feeling it’s a matter of trust. He has a lot of faith in me on the field, and I hope to repay him by getting back to where I was.
“I think we were quite a structured team at Exeter. I feel like week in, week out, everyone knew their roles and knew what they had to do. It was a case of the gaffer, he just wants you to do your job and I feel like if you’ve got 11 players out there doing their job the rest will take care of itself.”
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