Jarryd Hayne could take on Steven Gerrard and the Liverpool Legends
JARRYD Hayne is being headhunted for a shock one-off code switch to take on Steven Gerrard and the Liverpool Legends in Sydney next month.
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JARRYD Hayne is being headhunted for a shock one-off code switch to take on Steven Gerrard and the Liverpool Legends in Sydney next month.
The Daily Telegraph can reveal the ambitious plan to lure Hayne back home as part of an Australian Legends squad for the historic clash at ANZ Stadium on January 7.
Organisers are confident Hayne would be available for a cameo just three days after the San Francisco 49ers’ NFL season finishes.
It’s understood Hayne, a boyhood Liverpool fan, has entertained the promoters’ idea of taking part if the appearance was for a charity.
Hayne, who has had a non-playing role with the 49ers since being relegated to their practice squad seven weeks ago, has not given up on making it back on to the 53-man active roster.
The 49ers play the Cincinnati Bengals this morning at Levi’s Stadium and finish their season with games against the Detroit Lions on December 28 and St Louis Rams on January 4.
Not only would Hayne’s involvement be a promoter’s dream, it would also place the man himself on the field with one of his sporting heroes — former Liverpool skipper Gerrard.
The pair are both now pursuing their sporting goals in California, where Gerrard plays for the LA Galaxy in the US’s Major League Soccer.
“It will be an amazing evening. Jarryd playing should ensure a sellout,” one source close to the match said.
“He’s obviously not a soccer player but Jarryd will go okay. He is such an athlete.”
It would mark a spectacular return to ANZ Stadium for Hayne, who lit up the Olympic venue when NSW broke Queensland’s eight-year Origin dominance with victory in last year’s series.
Hayne has had an enormous respect for the Socceroos, having forged friendships with the likes of Brett Emerton and Tim Cahill, and trained alongside Mile Sterjovski.
The Australian Legends players have already spoken glowingly about the chance of playing alongside Hayne, who would be likely to make a 25-minute cameo appearance on the wing.
“He will certainly have plenty of speed. It will be interesting to see how he goes,” one source said.
“He is right-footed so I would imagine he would play on the right wing.”
Like his former NSW and Australian teammate Robbie Farah, Hayne is a parochial Liverpool FC fan. The pair visited Liverpool’s headquarters during a Kangaroos tour in 2013.
He even took to social media over the weekend to gauge Farah’s interest in the clash.
“Will @LFC 2nd biggest supporter in Australia @robbiefarah be at the game Jan 7??” Hayne tweeted.
The Socceroos legends side will be captained by Robbie Slater and coached by Sydney FC’s Graham Arnold. Slater and Arnold are NRL fans.
The game will showcase some of the greatest players in Liverpool’s history, including Gerrard, goalscoring cult heroes Ian Rush and Robbie Fowler, England defender Jamie Carragher, controversial goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar and midfielder Gary McAllister, who was an assistant coach with the Reds until manager Brendan Rodgers was sacked in October.
Gerard Houllier will manage the side.
The Aussies will include Slater, Tony Vidmar, Tony Popovic, Brett Emerton, Alex Tobin, Mark Bosnich, Jason Culina, Scott Chipperfield, Ned Zelic and Stan Lazaridis.
There has been much speculation about Hayne returning to the NRL, but he is determined to succeed with the 49ers.
Will @LFC 2nd biggest supporter in Australia @robbiefarah be at the game Jan 7??
— jarryd hayne (@JarrydHayne) December 16, 2015“I feel 10 times more confident than I did six weeks ago when I was actually playing. It’s day and night,” Hayne said over the weekend.
“I know I’ve just got to be patient. It’s about staying ready if I get called up, and if I don’t, I don’t. It’s all about being ready and training hard.”
Anfield legend Gerrard said recently he was busting for play in the match.
“It will be great to play with the official Liverpool FC Legends,” Gerrard told Liverpool’s official website. “The squad looks like it’s a great set of lads. It’ll be good to get on the pitch with them. Our fans are the best and to play in front of them again will be emotional, I’m sure.”
Originally published as Jarryd Hayne could take on Steven Gerrard and the Liverpool Legends
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