Bailey joins Manly
ROBERT DILLON
THE Newcastle Knights can only hope Chris Bailey does not prove to be the one that got away after the in-form five-eighth agreed to terms with Manly yesterday.
Bailey will join the Sea Eagles next season after clinching a three-year deal estimated to be worth about $500,000 virtually double what he had been earning from the Knights.
The 25-year-old was disappointed to be leaving Newcastle but realistically was left with little option. The Knights could not match the concrete offers he had received from Manly and the Bulldogs.
"There was another couple of solid offers on the table, and here there wasn't actually any offer on the table," Bailey said last night. "In the end, it's what I had to do, and I've made that decision.
"I'd love to have stayed in Newcastle and love playing footy here.
"It's a great club, but at this stage of my career . . . to have that security for the next three years is something I haven't had before.
``It gives me a chance to really establish myself in the NRL.''
Bailey has made only 18 NRL appearances since joining the Knights from Nelson Bay in 2006 but has scored five tries in five games this year, including a hat-trick in Sunday's loss to Wests Tigers.
The big question is whether the Knights have allowed a future representative player to slip through their fingers.
Bailey said the prospect of playing in the same backline as Jamie Lyon, Matt Orford, Brett Stewart and Steve Matai was ``definitely a major attraction'' in joining the
2007 runners-up.
``They've got a very strong side and a great coach,'' he said.
``I think it will be a similar sort of place to play footy as Newcastle a sort of a one-team town, if you can call it that and with very loyal supporters.''
Bailey said his goal now was to help the Knights make an impact in the race for the 2008 play-offs.
``I'm 100 per cent committed to the rest of the year here,'' he said.
``We've got a great side here, and I think we can go a long way in this competition. So there's no doubt that for the rest of the year I'll be doing my absolute best for the Knights and trying to help us go as far as we can.''
Manly coach Des Hasler said Bailey was ``a talent we have had our eye on for some time''.
Bailey confirmed that before making his decision he had consulted his older brother, Wigan star Phil Bailey, who started his career at Manly. It is also understood he talked with former Knights teammate Josh Perry, who joined the Sea Eagles this season.
Knights coach Brian Smith said nobody at the club would begrudge Bailey his opportunity at Manly.
``It was a situation where we couldn't make the same sort of [financial] commitment to him that they were willing to,'' Smith said.
``But, on a personal level, I know how hard he's worked and I'm happy for him.''
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