IT’S TAKEN six long years and a lot of heartache, but Huddersfield Giants captain Kevin Brown and his wife Kirsty finally have the baby they always wanted.

Tiny Harry, now just 13 weeks old, is nothing short of a modern miracle – genetically theirs but carried by a surrogate mother.

Because Kirsty, 23, suffers from an extremely rare condition, Rokitansky Syndrome, which causes fertility problems, using a surrogate was the couple’s only chance of having a baby of their own.

“Now we’ve got him home it is a miracle,” says Kirsty. “He’s worth every up and down we have been through. We are just so happy.”

The couple, who met when Kirsty was just 16 and Kevin was 20, knew from their earliest days together that they wanted a family but they also knew that they had many obstacles to overcome.

Rokitansky Syndrome, thought to affect one in 4,500 women, causes baby girls to be born without a uterus. Kirsty was 15 when she discovered she had the condition.

“It was devastating,” she says. “I have always loved children and always had babies around me.”

When she met Kevin through her brother Gareth Hock who plays rugby for Kevin’s former club Wigan Warriors, Kirsty was honest and open with him about the condition.

She also told him that a cousin had offered to be a surrogate mother.

Kevin, 27, said: “But the doctors told us that it could take three years or more to complete the process so we knew we had to start early. And we wanted to have a baby as soon as possible.”

Although Kirsty has no womb, she has functioning ovaries and is otherwise healthy.

She said: “When the doctors spoke to us they said that the treatment should be fairly straight forward. We were both young and fertile.”

The couple, who married in 2008 and live in Fenay Bridge, spent more than £10,000 on the test-tube fertilisation treatment and subsequent embryo implantation. Tragically, their first attempt failed when Kirsty’s cousin Emma miscarried.

But then they received an offer to try again from the partner of another of Kirsty’s cousins and this time everything went well.

The surrogate, Kym, delivered a healthy baby boy, weighing 7lbs 2ozs, on March 6, giving the couple the greatest gift one human being can give another. Harry has been named after Kevin’s grandfather.

Kevin said: “We are so grateful to Kym – she’s been absolutely wonderful.”

Kirsty added: “We saw him born. It was the best experience ever. I will never, ever forget that day and what she did for us.”

The couple now have one more hurdle to overcome.

Even though Harry is their genetic offspring, Kym’s name is on his birth certificate.

“Kirsty has to go to court to apply for parental control,” said Kevin.

“The law hasn’t kept up with the science. She’s also had to give up work (she was a carer for an MS sufferer) because you can’t have maternity leave for a baby born to a surrogate.

“If you adopt you can have maternity leave – every other aspect has been thought about and covered apart from our situation.”

Kevin and Kirsty say they feel they were also discriminated against when it came to funding for the fertility treatment. Because they were using a surrogate they were told they would have to pay for themselves.

They have pointed out that while they could afford to do this, others may not be in as fortunate a position.

Kevin added: “The last thing we want to do now is moan about money. None of it matters any more, we are just so happy.”

News of their baby son’s arrival – announced in The Examiner – brought a flurry of letters from well wishers wanting to share their joy.

“We got letters from people who said that our story had cheered them up,’’ said Kevin. “Letters from people who had had fertility problems themselves. You don’t realise just how many people have difficulties.’’

Baby Harry has also become something of a celebrity at the rugby club. He’s been to virtually every game so far, even travelling to away matches in Leeds, Hull and Bradford.

Who knows, with a father and uncle who have both played rugby for England, young Harry could even be a future star on the field.

But for now Kevin and Kirsty are just content to watch their son grow.

“He’s such a wonderful baby, so laid back and happy,” said Kirsty. “All we said we wanted was a healthy, happy baby and we have got more with him because he’s perfect.”

“When Kevin comes home from training he picks Harry up and they just sit looking at each other. I love that time, it’s the best.”

Unfortunately for Kevin’s loyal fans, Harry’s arrival means that the Brown family will be leaving Huddersfield at the end of the rugby season. He is transferring to play for Widnes, which is close to where both of their families live.

“I miss my mum and my family and Kevin misses his,” said Kirsty, who comes from Wigan. “We want to be able to share Harry with them. At the moment we’re doing a lot of driving backwards and forwards.”

Both Kirsty and Kevin belong to close-knit extended families.

Last year when Kevin’s grandmother was having treatment for cancer they made many journeys over the Pennines to see her.

“It will be so much easier when we’re all in one place,” said Kirsty. “I’ve got loads of great friends here but it’s not the same as having your mum around the corner.”

So after five years as residents of Huddersfield they’ll be going ‘home’.

And, hopefully, by the end of next month they will have sorted out the legal issues over Harry’s birth and Kirsty and Kevin will be able to fully relax and enjoy their long-awaited baby.