Jarryd Hayne rape trial: Survivor’s recount of night of hell

The woman raped by Jarryd Hayne has retold her trauma many times. This is what the third jury accepted happened on her night from hell.

It has taken a lengthy and complex legal battle, three trials and the constant reliving of trauma.

More than four years after Jarryd Hayne’s sexual assault victim was violated twice on the 2018 NRL Grand Final night, she has seen justice.

A jury has found Hayne guilty of two counts of sexual intercourse without consent.

This is the woman’s recount of the night that will likely land Hayne back inside a jail cell.

It was told during the trial by Crown prosecutor John Sfinas, as her evidence was given in closed court.

Sex was not out of the question before they met

A string of flirty and sexually suggestive text messages and DMs were exchanged between the pair in the weeks preceding September 30 – the first time they met and the night of the rape.

The woman told Hayne he was “absolutely gorgeous”, and that she’d “imagined what it would be like f**king” him.

These exchanges were presented to the jury by Hayne’s defence team throughout the trial as evidence that she was interested in him and his fame and wanted them to have sex.

And her initial keenness — regardless of his status — was not disputed by the prosecution.

However, the jury ultimately accepted that Hayne was guilty of the charges.

Before they met, sex with Hayne was not out of the question for her. But that did not mean she could not change her mind at any point.

Jarryd Hayne with his legal team and wife Amellia Hayne. Picture: Monique Harmer/NCA Newswire

One crucial moment changed her mind

When Hayne arrived at the woman’s house, Vodka Cruiser-in-hand, he went into her bedroom where she lay on the bed and began to make small talk.

He played several YouTube songs, including Ed Sheeran’s cover of Oasis’ Wonderwall – to try to seduce her, the court heard. She did not sing along with him.

But the vibe went from awkward to worse when the woman saw the taxi waiting through the window blinds.

She realised, at that moment, Hayne was only there for sex.

It was not the case that she had not considered having sex with him beforehand, but she had hoped the fling could one day become something more.

She had hoped that whether or not they had sex, he would at least stay and get to know her.

Crown prosecutor John Sfinas. Picture: Monique Harmer/NCA Newswire

What she did not expect – and what she had decided she would not consent to – was Hayne arriving drunk, having sex with her while a taxi meter runs and then leaving immediately once the deed was done.

She felt like crap, the court head. And from this moment, she knew did not want anything sexual to happen.

The prosecution argued the woman made it clear to Hayne that she did not want to have sex with him.

Hayne himself did not deny this, admitting she was “filthy” the taxi was there and that she asked, “Did you think you were just going to come here and have sex?”

Hayne did not initially respond to this question, which the prosecution said showed a “sinking feeling of being found out”. Eventually, he told her she knew he was heading back to Sydney.

After some more awkwardness, which saw the pair fumble around the bedroom to find something to watch the rest of the NRL Grand Final on, the taxi driver knocked on the door.

Hayne had told the driver he was only in the house to pick up a bag. The court heard this was because he knew the driver “would not be happy with the situation” – which was that he was ducking into the woman’s house for sex.

“He needed a back-up,” Mr Sfinas said.

Hayne was found guilty of the crimes in the NSW District Court. Picture: Nikki Short/NCA NewsWire

Twenty minutes of hell

After answering the door to speak to the taxi driver, Hayne watched some of the NRL game in the loungeroom with the woman’s mother on the way back to her daughter’s bedroom.

The court heard he realised he needed to be quick, so he “manhandled” her by moving her face towards his and started kissing her.

“You might think that was born out of frustration because things weren’t going quickly enough,” Mr Sfinas told the jury.

Hayne then pulled the woman’s pants down. She said “no” and “stop” but he proceeded to put a finger inside of her and then gave her oral sex.

The woman said she didn’t really know what Hayne was doing but could feel it was rough.

The prosecution noted Hayne was more than twice her weight and had an obvious physical advantage as she tried to resist.

About 30 seconds later, he realised there was blood everywhere and stood up. They were both shocked – the woman knew it was not her period.

After Hayne rushed to the bathroom to clean himself up, the woman went into the shower and felt stinging and pain. She was left with two lacerations, one which was still visible to a doctor six weeks later.

She returned to the bedroom and told Hayne she was in pain.

He told her he’d obviously clipped her with his finger and she would be okay, before leaving in the taxi that had been sitting outside that whole time.

But the jury accepted she was not okay.

It accepted she did not consent to Hayne’s oral and penetrative acts, regardless of any flirty messages sent before that moment or whether she had previously considered sex with him.

It found the 35-year-old guilty of two counts of sexual intercourse without consent.

Now, the two-time Dally-M winner is again staring down the barrel of jail time.