Tell him he’s dreaming! Jarryd Hayne’s Olympic ambition is little more than a smokescreen

WHAT’S next Jarryd, Wimbledon? Tour de France? How about swimming the English Channel? Hayne’s Rio Olympics “dream” is simply a smokescreen and a way to save face after failing to make it in the NFL, writes Mike Colman.

WHAT’S next Jarryd, Wimbledon? Tour de France? How about swimming the English Channel?

News that the Hayne Plane has lifted off from San Francisco and is headed to Rio with a scheduled stopover in Suva must have his many supporters scratching their heads.

After all, everyone loves someone who follows their dream, but how many dreams does this guy have?

Rugby league, American football – apparently there was some track and field hurdles in there too at some stage – but rugby sevens? Who knew?

One thing we can say in his favour, this isn’t about money.

Not like the lucrative dreams that Karmichael Hunt and Israel Folau chased with such a spectacular lack of success in the AFL.

Maybe there would have been a decent buck in it if he’d signed with the Aussie sevens, but the entire Fijian budget couldn’t pay the 49ers mini bar bill on an away game to Dallas.

Not that Australian Rugby would have been offering, I’d venture.

Jarryd Hayne catches up with Ben Ryan and the Fiji sevens team earlier this year.

By ending the Quade Cooper experiment last week, and with big question marks hanging over fellow Wallabies Nick Cummins and Henry Speight, coach Andy Friend has shown that he’s not swayed by the celebrity factor.

He wants tried and tested sevens players who have honed their skills over years on the circuit.

With just one tournament left before the teams head for Rio, Hayne will have even less opportunity to acclimatise to the game than Cooper and co – and they had advantage of regularly playing 15-man rugby, sevens’ big brother.

So don’t think this is going to be a walk in the park for Hayne.

He’s probably guaranteed a run in one of Fiji’s less competitive pool matches – that’s if he passes WADA’s eligibility rules and even makes it to Rio.

After all Fiji’s English-born coach Ben Ryan will have to justify his inclusion in the squad at the expense of a player who has been part of the program through the qualifying journey.

Other than that, given that Fiji has managed to establish itself as the top ranked sevens team in the world without the help of Hayne or any other import, he could face the ignominy of standing on the sideline as a glorified cheerleader as Cooper did in Sydney.

Hayne at the Eels.

Hayne as a 49er.

So why risk it? Why walk away from even the slight possibility of making it at the 49ers for the promise of a maybe?

Because it was an out; a way to save face.

If Hayne had given up on the NFL and returned to Australian rugby league it would have been an admission of failure.

Sure he did an incredible thing and made the starting roster in San Francisco, but he didn’t really “make it”.

He couldn’t replicate his trial form in the Big Show, fumbled the first ball that came his way, never showed that he fully grasped the nuances of the game and was eventually dropped from one of the worst performing teams in the competition.

With the excitement and adrenaline rush of the first season behind him, he knew the enormity of the challenge ahead.

Maybe he felt he couldn’t do it; maybe it just wasn’t fun anymore.

Whatever the reason, he wanted out, but to come back to NRL was to come back a loser in the eyes of the knockers.

But to go to the Olympics? Now that’s another story. Another “following my dream” story. Throw in the Fijian link (remember how playing rugby league for the country of his father’s birth gave him a new outlook on life?) and the Hayne Plane is flying again.

Trouble is, the Olympics only last two weeks. What then?

My money’s on cross-country skiing.

Hayne wants to play rugby sevens at the Olympics.

Originally published as Tell him he’s dreaming! Jarryd Hayne’s Olympic ambition is little more than a smokescreen