Homesick Hayne’s $700,000 sacrifice to beat loneliness

The most polarising and enigmatic figure in the NRL has taken a $700,000 pay cut to end his loneliness.

Jarryd Hayne speaks at Parramatta training yesterday. Picture: Getty Images.

The most polarising and enigmatic figure in the NRL has taken a $700,000 pay cut to end the loneliness.

“I don’t think there’s many people in the country who’d be willing to sacrifice 700K,” Parramatta Eels captain Tim Mannah said ahead of Jarryd Hayne’s comeback in next week’s opening round of the NRL.

“It says a lot about how genuine he is, how authentic he is about coming home and how much it means to him. I feel like everyone is pretty quick to judge him and he’s a target at times, but people quickly brush over the sacrifice he’s made to come back here. I’m close to him, and I can see the difference in him when he’s back in this environment and back home.”

Hayne left the Eels in 2014 to chase his NFL dream. He left the San Francisco 49ers in 2016 to chase his Olympics dream. He left the Fijian rugby sevens squad when he was unwanted for the Rio Games. He went to the Gold Coast Titans in the NRL because the money was a dream at $1.2 million a season. He’s still on the sort of coin that would be a life-changing dream for most folk — there’s no real need to pass the hat around for him just yet — but regardless, his wallet is not as fat as it used to be.

“Definitely. You hit it on the head with that,” Hayne said about the pay cut. “I just wanted to be back here. I wasn’t sure if there was going to be an opportunity. I was fortunate enough that there was.”

Hayne was an Eels and NRL superstar when he departed as a 26-year-old in the prime of his career as a fullback. He returns as a 30-year-old centre no longer expected to single-handedly inspire the Eels to their first premiership since 1986. However, some people want to kiss his feet. Others want to clip his ear.

Enjoy the attention? Hate it? “I’m not a big fan of it,” he claimed. “I’m more of a laid-back person. I really don’t like it. Probably the thing I loved about the Gold Coast the most was that everyone was so laid-back up there. Wherever you go out, to a cafe or a beach, everyone is really laid-back and not noticing you. But in Sydney, especially around Parra, the fans are hectic. I was at a school the other day and a little kid’s dad said he didn’t like following me after I went to the Titans. But it’s been great. Unbelievable. Coming out west, they live and breathe their footy here.”

The Eels play the Panthers in the opening round. Hayne’s 177th appearance for his club will come more than three years after his 176th.

On his pressure-relieving status as one important Eels player rather than the sole inspiration, he said: “Pressure doesn’t bother me. We’ve all got expectations on ourselves. We’ve all got things we want to do personally and as a whole, and that’s definitely to be there at the end of the year. There’s no one player we’re going to rely on this year. The balance we’ve got is unbelievable. The depth in every single position. We’ve got players who can play anywhere. The stars here now are Normy (Corey Norman) and Bev (Bevan French) and Mitch (Moses). They’re the ones who are going to be starting things and finishing things off for us. It’s good to sit back and wait for opportunities. That’s the thing about playing centre. I’m looking forward to it. We’re looking at a big year. That excites me.”

Hayne found intermittent success on the road. And loneliness. “What have I learned? The value of the community you’re in,” he said. “Being around Parra, knowing people, you take for granted your friends from church or your friends from the team, that sort of thing. That’s what I missed the most, just being able to call someone and boom, they’re there. In Parra there’s about 20 people who are always hanging out or doing something or catching up. When you leave, you miss that. You need that. Being back here has been a reality check. It’s made me realise how hard it was to be away. I don’t really plan things too much. I just wing it. It’s all a journey, man, and I love it.”