Brough studied at the University of Oxford and played for their hockey team during the 73rd varsity match in 1973, scoring the only goal of the game.[1] Brough played club hockey for Swansea Hockey Club, earning Welsh caps while at the club.[2]
A pivotal year arrived in 1978, when he took a position teaching at Solihull School, he taught History, Business Studies and Economics and much later in 2004 became head of Business Studies.[3] The same year of 1978 saw Brough sign for Harborne Hockey Club and play in the Intercontinental Cup tournament in Kuala Lumpur.[4]
Although missing out on the initial 22-strong squad for the Great Britain team for the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow,[5] he later made the 20-man squad selected but subsequently did not attend due to the boycott.[6] He would later join Olton & West Warwickshire Hockey Club and became the club captain.[7]
He retired from teaching in 2011 but continued to play masters hockey. In 2013 he was playing over-55 representative hockey for Wales at the Three Nations tournament in Edinburgh[8] and in 2019 was in the over-65 age category for Wales at the Grand Masters Hockey European Cup 2019.[9]