Eels star opens up on ‘strange’ contract meeting which sealed his future

Dylan Brown signed one of the biggest deals of his life at the end of 2022, but even he wasn’t sure if the Eels were ready to commit to a unique contract request.

Dylan Brown has opened up on his unique deal which could see him become an Eel for life. Picture: Richard Dobson

It was one of the most unique contract extensions the NRL had ever seen, and even Dylan Brown admits he never thought the Eels would agree to the deal which could keep him at Parramatta until the end of the 2031 season.

Brown has always been one of the hottest properties in rugby league since he made his debut in 2019, but interest in the five-eighth reached fever pitch the moment clubs could start negotiating with him last year.

Brown is one of the most popular players at the Eels. Picture: Richard Dobson

The Dolphins went hard at the New Zealand star as they searched for their marquee man, but in the end the Eels did enough to convince the young gun the west is best after reaching last year’s grand final.

Brown signed an extension to stay until the end of 2025, but he has an option in his favour to remain an Eel until 2031 thanks to his agent Gavin Orr.

The 22-year-old essentially told Orr to not make any contact until he returned from his World Cup duties which included a quick trip to Amsterdam, Switzerland, Barcelona and Paris after the Kiwis were eliminated.

Orr obliged and then asked to meet up a few days after Brown returned, where he laid out his plans for the future.

Brown had a stellar World Cup after taking Parramatta to the grand final. Picture: Nathan Stirk / Getty Images

“I respect my manager so much more after all that,” Brown told NCA NewsWire.

“I told him not to talk to me until I got back from Europe, and that’s exactly what he did.

“I got back, went into his office and he had all the plans up on a board. There were a few teams there but we went to Parra and it was done just like that.”

Brown admitted he didn’t think the Eels would accept the player option part of the contract extensions for between 2026-2031 because it gave him so much power to leave. But in the end the Eels had no issues with it.

“Previously, my manager had put it to me as ‘if Parra accept this’ … which I thought was a bit strange, because I doubted that they would ever accept the deal,” Brown said.

“Honestly, I thought it was freaking ridiculous. But they accepted it straight away, which shows the confidence they have in me, which I’m grateful for.

“There wasn’t too much back and forth, which is exactly what you want when you’re sorting a deal, because then the media gets involved and it can get messy. But this was smooth sailing.”

Brown wants Moses to stay at Parramatta. Picture: Bradley Kanaris / Getty Images

The security of having such a unique deal means Brown can reassess his future in a few years if his personal life changes at all, although he made it clear that Parramatta is his home and he is all in to help them end their premiership drought.

“Things happen in life and things change,” he said after playing all 28 games last season.

“I don’t want to have a kid right now, but someone might become a father or something might happen with your family, so you want to know that you have the power and freedom to change things up in situations like that.

“With my deal, I feel confident that I can do that.”