Why Jackson Hastings needs an NRL lifeline to carry his late mother’s legacy
Jackson Hastings was bathing his newborn daughter when he learned the one constant “light” in his life had been shut off forever. But, as the ex-Knights star reveals, even more is at stake if he can’t find a new NRL club.
Jackson Hastings was bathing his 11-week old daughter, Scottie, when he got the phone call every son dreads receiving.
That his mum, Megan, had died after suffering a heart attack in July.
“You can’t even describe the emotions that sort of run through you at that point,” Hastings said.
“Was just in the bath with my daughter one night and got a phone call from my sister.”
Hastings had only recently been recalled into Newcastle’s NRL side when the phone rang, having never received an explanation as to why he was left out of first grade at Newcastle for the majority of the 2025 season.
While the NRL snub was tough, losing his mum was the moment from which he instantly thought he would not recover.
For the 29-year-old, rugby league was the last thing on his mind. His attention now turned to helping look after his two younger sisters, Jonte and Jorja, and navigating life without the one person who stuck by him through everything.
Even three months removed from his loss, Hastings revealed it still doesn’t feel real.
“It’s just one of those things, you go to wake up every morning and text your mum and ask how her day is going to pan out, what she’s doing, when she’s going to come up and see her granddaughter,” Hastings said.
“Growing up, knowing my daughter won’t really know her nan hurts me the most.”
Hastings’ youngest sister, Jonte, was living with Megan when she died.
Now, he is helping move her into a place of her own, while providing the same care and “light” his mother did for their whole family.
“We were all very reliant on Mum, now we’ve got to rely on each other, be there when they get married,” he said.
“It’s going to be hard, but it’s also going to be special.
“I have an important role in watching them grow into beautiful young women and hopefully they have a family of their own one day, so I take that role pretty seriously.”
It’s why Hastings, who has been without a club since his Knights contract expired at the end of the season, is keen to link up with another NRL team next year, rather than again relocate to England.
He has fond memories of his time in the UK — winning the Super League Man Of Steel, awarded to the competition’s best player, and meeting his partner, Amelia Smith, and the pair have been able to now start their own family.
“I’d love to stay in the NRL,” Hastings said.
“Obviously what happened with Mum, and being close to my sisters and support network, it would be great for me, personally.”
When his mum died, Hastings was already enduring a tumultuous year at Newcastle, making just five NRL appearances and spending most of the season in NSW Cup.
Hastings is adamant he still has a lot to offer any club.
“Whatever comes about, I know they’re getting a good rugby league player and a good person, regardless of what people want to try and say or portray,” Hastings said.
“I’ve played my best footy over the last couple of years and I still reckon the peak of my powers is ahead of me.”
The appeal to stay close to Jonte and Jorja even has the halfback willing to change positions to remain in the NRL.
“I just need a consistent run of being trusted and being given a role that obviously suits myself in the team,” Hastings said.
“But position-wise, it doesn’t matter, either halfback or lock.”
While taking notes from his Mum on raising his new daughter, Hastings said the biggest lessons he wanted to pass down to his daughter were the ones he has picked up from the tougher moments of his life.
That includes his lack of relationship with his own father, Roosters legend Kevin Hastings.
“I suppose not having a great relationship with my old man actually taught me how to love for something even more than what I felt back off him,” Hastings said.
“It’s been a blessing in disguise that I have been able to experience it from the other end, and I have made a promise to myself and partner that, obviously, no matter what happens in life, Scottie’s always going to be the priority.”
The former Newcastle, Wests, Manly and Sydney Roosters playmaker also believes he’s developed enough maturity to be a leader wherever he lands.
Revealing he’s learned “more bad lessons than good”, Hastings wants to help the next generation of NRL stars avoid the same mistakes he made climbing the ranks.
“I reckon it helps me within the locker room now with the younger kids coming through,” Hastings said.
“With social media, you see kids coming up now and they want it all straight away, I was one of them kids who was lucky enough to have it all sort of fall at my feet.
“You let them know that it can actually be taken away from you quicker than you get it.
“The hardest part’s not getting in the team, it’s staying there.”
During his off-season, Hastings will not only hunt for a new club, but become a fan of a new sport, attending the sold-out Everest on Saturday with a number of fellow NRL teammates.
Despite not paying much attention to horse racing, Hastings’ link with the sport isn’t a new hobby.
“My stepdad has always been around horses, he’s the harness racer manager of NSW,” Hastings said.
“I got to go in and around the jockeys when I was younger and see how competitive they are.
“I’m looking forward to spending time with the boys, having a few beers and backing some losers.”
Originally published as Why Jackson Hastings needs an NRL lifeline to carry his late mother’s legacy
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