Two Doesn't Go Into One For The Brailey Brothers

Bulldogs duo Josh and Brett Morris know what it feels like to play alongside your brother. Ditto for Souths pair George and Tom Burgess.

But Cronulla's Jayden and Blayke Brailey aren't so fortunate.

That's what happens when two brothers play the same position, and the Brailey boys - both hookers - understand that two doesn't go into one and their chances of ever being on the field at the same time are slim.

Jayden, 22, is 27 games into his NRL career with Cronulla, while 19-year-old Blayke plays with the Sharks' feeder team in the Intrust Super Premiership and is eager to crack the NRL.

A small sampling of their friendly sibling rivalry recently played out on television.

In an interview with Channel Nine at Belmore Oval after Blayke played an integral role in Newtown's big comeback win over Canterbury, he was asked if he had any message for his older brother watching at home.

"I'm coming to get you bro," he said, staring straight down the lens with a big smile on his face.

Jayden knows his brother is fierce competition. But banter around the Brailey dinner table never gets unruly.

"We're both pretty supportive of each other," Jayden told NRL.com.

"It's a bit of a shame both of us are the same position, as one of us might miss out one day," Jayden told NRL.com.

"In saying that, we don't go at each other at home."

Jayden believes he and Blayke are both essentially built to play hooker.

"We're both similar body shapes, both reasonably quick off the mark, both really enjoy being involved, both good with our hands and our passing," he explained.

"We both have played in the halves, and I've played a bit in the middle. So we both ended up in the dummy-half area. I think our speed around the middle of the ruck is what pushed as both there."

There is a possibility they could play together after Jayden added muscle to his frame in the off-season.

"If I was to play most of the game as dummy-half, and then Blayke came on, I'd probably slip back to the middle forwards to give them a breather," he said.

"Blayke's still 19 so he's still learning his trade and needs to get a bit of size on. His focus is to learn this year. He might get a crack in the NRL and he might not. He'll be training with us every day so he will learn a lot."

A former Australian Schoolboy, Blayke joined Cronulla's NRL training squad last November, which provides impetus for not only Jayden but interchange hooker James Segeyaro.

The Sharks' 2016 premiership-winning hooker Michael Ennis is working with all three.

"Blayke's development over the last 18 months has been sensational," Ennis told NRL.com.

"A lot of of guys these days tend to try to tackle over the ball, whereas Blayke has got that really good technique of getting under the big guys.

"Jayden's development since he came into first grade has been first class. He's getting the rewards he deserves. He trains hard and applies himself well. 

"And then there's a wonderful player in James Segeyaro, a former Daly M hooker of the year. He's such a powerful attacking weapon who we've not seen his best at the Sharks through injuries.

"The positive thing is that Blayke is putting pressure on both those guys and they are really good players so that says a lot about how good Blayke is.

"I've got a huge opinion of him. I think he's going to be a really good NRL player. It's going to be a nice headache for Flanno [coach Shane Flanagan]."

But Jayden has the No.9 jersey and won't be giving it up easily.

"Statistically I'd like to increase my tackle numbers a bit more, so my defence keeps improving," he said.

"Attack-wise last year was about finding my place in the team and feeding the ball to [halves] Chad [Townsend] and Jimmy [Maloney] all the time. This year I'd like to carve out my own game by running a bit more."