Even though Brailey is contracted until the end of the 2025 season and has recovered from two significant knee injuries during his time with the Knights, including missing the entire previous season, there are still doubts circulating regarding his future.
According to reports that surfaced at the beginning of August, Brailey was granted permission to speak with rival teams and look into his possibilities on the open market as the Knights look to restructure their squad and clear out space in their salary cap.
After leaving the Shire, where he managed 69 games for the Cronulla Sharks from 2017 to 2019, Brailey has made 61 appearances for the Knights in five seasons, occasionally playing second fiddle to youthful Phoenix Crossland.
Brailey, who has an off-contract at the end of the 2025 season, is one of several players who can talk to other teams and might be the most recent Newcastle Knights player to leave the team.
According to News Corp, the Parramatta Eels are stepping up their pursuit of the hooker, who has been linked to leaving the Knights for the previous few months, and are thinking of making a move for an early release from the balance of his contract.
His departure would allow the Knights to free up about $600,000 in salary budget space, which may benefit both teams. Meanwhile, the Eels are in dire need of a hooker after Matt Arthur left.
With the rise of Phoenix Crossland, a New Zealand Kiwis international, and the rumoured arrival of Arthur from the Eels, who played for the U19s NSW Blues, Brailey’s future at the Knights is all but guaranteed to be gone by the end of the upcoming season.
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