Jarryd Hayne discussed plans to quit NFL to chase Olympic dream ‘months ago’

TIM Mannah has revealed close mate Jarryd Hayne confided in him months ago about his desire to quit the NFL and chase his Olympic dream.

TIM Mannah has revealed close mate Jarryd Hayne confided in him months ago about his desire to quit the NFL and chase his Olympic dream.

In an exclusive interview with The Daily Telegraph, Mannah confirmed Hayne first floated the idea of linking with the Fijian Sevens side while he was in Sydney over the summer.

It’s why the injured Parramatta skipper wasn’t surprised by Monday’s news that his former teammate was leaving the San Francisco 49ers in a bid to play Sevens Rugby at Rio in August.

Mannah says he knew Hayne’s switch was coming.

“Because I knew Jarryd was leaning towards this,” Mannah admitted on Monday.

“We’ve had chats about it (the Olympics) before, so it wasn’t that big of a shock.

“The Olympics has been a goal of Jarryd’s for a long time — it has definitely been on his mind for a while.

“People think it’s because he was about to get cut, but that’s not true and they don’t know Jarryd very well. This was premeditated before he even went back into camp.

“If he had stayed in the NFL for one more season he would have missed out on the Olympics. The timing for him is about achieving that goal and if he can win a gold medal that’s a cool story.

“Plus he isn’t driven by finances or the things normal people are driven by. He is more driven by goals and challenges and he has always wanted to go to the Olympics and he has sensed an opportunity.”

Mannah said he was frustrated by those being critical of Hayne and labelling him a “failure”. He knows how hard his former Eels teammate has worked to even make the NFL, let alone play eight games.

“I think sometimes the culture in our country is to cut people down,” he said.

“When he was over there in the NFL everyone thought it was a cool dream and jumped on board, but now in some people’s eyes they see it as a failure.

“But it is anything but a failure. If people understood how big the competition in the NFL was, then they’d know the fact he even got to play over there is a huge accomplishment in itself.”

Instead of bagging Hayne, Mannah has urged the public to praise him for having the guts to chase another foreign sport in Rugby.

“It’s not going to be easy and there will be a lot of challenges,” he reasoned.

“I think people assume that this will just be an easy transition for him, but he is going to a sport he hasn’t played before with a skillet and fitness level that he has got to adapt to in a quick period of time.

“He has got a big task ahead of him.”

Mannah would love to see Hayne return to the NRL and ideally Parramatta if he isn’t successful in rugby.

“Oh absolutely — I think everyone would like to see him back in league,” he enthused.

“The club would love to see him back at the Eels, but I think he has still got a journey that he is on and I don’t know that rugby league is high on it at the moment.

“He has got these Olympics to qualify for and that will be his main focus. After that who knows what he is going to do.

“But people who think they’ve got him figured out are probably wrong.”

Close friend and former Parramatta trainer Hayden Knowles has also known about Hayne’s Olympic dream for some time. In fact, Knowles revealed this aspiration was even discussed in the hours before his announcement to leave the Eels back in late 2014.

“The day before Jarryd said he was going to the NFL, I actually spoke with him about the Olympics,” Knowles said.

“I jokingly said, ‘why don’t you go and be an Olympian?”

“He was so hell bent on the NFL, but he has thought about it before. This is another childhood thing.

“He has always wanted to be an Olympian, but at that age he wanted to be a sprinter. The Olympics is such a powerful dream of so many youngsters — it’s just such a historic event.

“Once you’re an Olympian — that’s it you’re an Olympian for life.”

Hayne with the Flying Fijian rugby sevens players Semi Kunatani and Pio Tuwai.

Hayne spent time with the Fijian side at the Sydney Rugby Sevens in February, including presenting the team with their jumpers.

Knowles believes this experienced had a significant impact on the former Test and Origin back.

“Just walking through the crowd every single Fijian supporter was so happy to see Jarryd,” he reflected.

“I know how passionate he is about Fiji and how it changed his life at the Rugby League World Cup in 2008.

“The Olympics is something he wants to chase and I’m really happy for him.”

Originally published as Jarryd Hayne discussed plans to quit NFL to chase Olympic dream ‘months ago’