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Striker Royce Brownlie has been released by the Wellington Phoenix A-League soccer club with one year left on his two-year contract.
Brownlie struggled to cement a spot in the Phoenix starting 11 last season when he made just eight appearances.
Although disappointed to be leaving the Phoenix, the Australian is philosophical about his stint with the club.
"I thought when I played I did well, but I never really got the chances that I wanted," he said today.
"It's one of those things that happen in football and you've just got to deal with it."
Brownlie will return to Brisbane with his wife and children.
The former Queensland Roar player will pursue a career in the construction industry but has not ruled out a return to professional soccer.
"If someone called me up and offered me the opportunity to play then definitely I'd jump at the chance.
"But right now, it's about my family. If they're happy then I'm happy, so I've got to look at the big picture."
Phoenix chief executive Tony Pignata said Brownlie had been a hard worker and was unlucky not to have had more opportunities go his way.
" ... he was the first to put his hand up and say that things hadn't gone as well as he had expected."
- NZPA
