Paramatta Eels star Dylan Brown is understood to have told team-mates that he will be parting ways with the club at the end of the 2025 NRL season having agreed a lucrative deal with Newcastle Knights.
The five-eighth is set to join the Broadmeadow-based club on a 10-year deal that according to The Daily Telegraph will see him earn around $13million.
He will be 36-years-old by the time the stand-off’s contract comes to an end.
The Eels star confirmed the news on Monday night, writing on his Instagram story: ‘Hello everyone, I have decided to take an opportunity that is best for me and my family.
‘To the Blue and Gold family… nothing changes. I’m locked in for this year and we have a job to do. Love.’
While the outlet reports Newcaslte are ‘confident’ that Brown will sign until the end of 2035, it is understood that the Eels now have a 10-day period to make a formal ‘counter bid’.
Paramatta had been hoping that Brown would extend his nine-year deal with the club, and there is a chance that he could renege on the deal and stay with Jason Ryles’ side, having been given a 10-day cooling off period.
It is understood that his deal could trump that of Gold Coast star Tino Fa’asuamaleaui’s, whose contract at the Titans is said to be worth around $12m in 2023.
The move, should it be fully ratified, will mean Brown will link up with fellow five-eighth superstar, Kalyn Ponga at Newcastle in what would be a prolific back-line partnership.
But the Eels are fighting to retain Brown. Should he leave the club, he will pocket around $1.3m-per-season with the Knights but opting not to defect could cost him around $6m.
More to follow…
