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Jarryd Hayne’s San Francisco gym work could be his undoing

Jarryd Hayne worked to build a bar-fridge physique for the NFL, but now it threatens to bring him undone.

Jarryd Hayne in action for Fiji during the pool-round match between England and Fiji in London on the weekend.
Jarryd Hayne in action for Fiji during the pool-round match between England and Fiji in London on the weekend.

Jarryd Hayne worked overtime at the Levi’s Stadium gymnasium to build the sort of bar-fridge physique required for the NFL. He pumped muscle upon muscle to prepare for the dodgem-car collisions at the heart of American football.

But the code-swapping chameleon’s iron-pumping shifts now threaten to bring him undone.

Hayne’s opening day for Fiji at the London Sevens showed his lack of cardiovascular fitness compared to just about every other player at Twickenham, even Nick Cummins, the huffing and puffing former Wallaby who told Hayne before the tournament to get his running shoes on – and keep them on.

The blunt-force physicality of the NFL meant Hayne rarely ran long distances for training, and it showed. From the NRL to the NFL to … NFI? Not quite. The bloke has skills that will never be lost but Sevens requires a team to possess either genuine speedsters or men with the lung capacity of a blue whale. For now, Hayne is neither.

“It’s not about game time,” Hayne said after receiving just under 10 minutes of action during Fiji’s first three matches. “It’s about going out there and doing a job for the team. That was a good learning curve and when you’re rucking and trying to ruck the ball, obviously you exert a lot of energy. It’s so much faster, it’s a lot quicker, I’m still getting used to it. I’m just being a sponge and learning as much as I can.”

He needed a water-soaked sponge and an oxygen tank. Regardless of overnight developments at Twickenham, Hayne will have at least six weeks to turn himself from a sprint-based battering ram to a long-striding, long-distance runner.

He was on the field for four-and-a-half minutes against England, touching the ball once. He was more involved in a quick burst against Wales - an offload, eureka! - before receiving a last-minute cameo against Australia and promptly coughing up a penalty because he was unaware of the rules. Hayne may have bitten off more than he can chew or do.

“His fitness is way down on our boys and that’s why we’re moderating what he’s doing,” said the judge and jury on his Rio selection, Fiji coach Ben Ryan.

“He was pretty sore come Friday after consecutive training in what’s been a light week for us. I’d be an idiot of a coach if having played five minutes in the World Series, I can start to make assumptions on where he can go.

“He’s a good footballer but we’ve got world class players, we’re the reigning world champions. There’s huge competition and sevens is our game in Fiji, so to get into our side you’ve got to be absolutely blitzing it.

“From him that’s going to mean going from a yo-yo test which they all do in NRL from a 16, where he is now, to a 22. When we go into the Olympic camp there’s no hiding place. We don’t pick by face we pick by form and he’ll have six or seven weeks to prove himself.”

Fiji became world champions after reaching the quarter-finals at Twickenham. Australia bombed out in the pool stage after Cummins had given his warning about fitness to that “rooster”, Hayne, when they crossed paths prior to the tournament. Cummins was speaking in his second language, Australian slang, rather than referring to Hayne’s likely new club in the NRL. We think.

Hayne told ESPN: “I’m still getting used to it. Sevens is so much faster than the NFL. There’s a lot more running and back-to-back speed. It’s not as physical as any sport I’ve played before. But it’s all about covering the field.”

Will Swanton
Will SwantonSport Reporter

Will Swanton is a sportswriter who’s won Walkley, Kennedy, Sport Australia and News Awards. He’s won the Melbourne Press Club’s Harry Gordon Award for Australian Sports Journalist of the Year.

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Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/sport/rugby-union/jarryd-haynes-san-francisco-gym-work-could-be-his-undoing/news-story/faa43418f78464b85ce0d9a0caff4cc8