After finally committing his future to rugby league for the next four years, Parramatta superstar Jarryd Hayne has warned that the NRL has to do more to keep the game’s best talent from rival codes.
The 21-year-old Dally M Medal winner on Thursday penned league’s most prized signature, securing a new four-season deal with the Eels reportedly worth $500,000 a season plus third party deals.
It comes after months of speculation surrounding his future, with reports he was being offered more than $1 million a season to join the AFL’s new western Sydney franchise.
Hayne, who was typically relaxed during a public signing at a shopping centre at Rouse Hill in Sydney’s west, said he always wanted to stay with the Eels, believing he still had plenty to achieve in rugby league.
But he bluntly admitted it would be hard to resist the advances from rival codes in four years time, citing the new challenge and financial incentives offered by rugby union and AFL as “very appealing”.
And amid speculation Test halfback Johnathan Thurston is also considering a code switch, Hayne passionately believed the NRL should be more flexible with the salary cap to help stem the flow of talent.
“I think I’m too young (to switch codes) now, but I think when it comes up next time it’s going to definitely be an option,” Hayne said.
“It’d be sad to go but it just seems like the NRL’s just letting players go, it’d be good to see them sort of step in.
“There’s a lot of big name players going and the way the (NRL) sort of sees it is that one player doesn’t make a whole competition.
“But when you’re losing such quality players in consecutive years the question’s got to be asked, how many more are we going to let go?”
“You want to play against the best, you don’t want to see them go to other codes, like Sonny Bill (Williams), Mark Gasnier, Craig Gower, Karmichael Hunt.
“… Everyone loves league but the challenge and the financial side of things to go to other codes is very appealing.”
Hayne’s current contract had been due to expire at the end of next season but that has been replaced by a much-improved four-year deal negotiated by manager Wayne Beavis.
The NSW and Test star said he was relieved to have secured his future for the coming years and was clear about his ambitions having taken the blue and golds to the NRL grand final this year.
“I think the top two goals is to win a State of Origin series and win the big one (grand final),” he said.
“They’re the two massive goals every player in the comp wants to achieve.”
Eels chief executive Paul Osborne said he was always hopeful Hayne would remain with the club, calling it a great day for rugby league as a whole.
“It would have been an absolute disaster for us if we had have lost Jarryd given I can’t recall any player that dominated a year like he did this year, week after week, after week,” Osborne said.
“For us to have lost him to another code would have been diabolical.”
Redb
Roar Guru
Media beat up the lot of it.
Redb
Roar Guru
Chris, you are spot on re LRT. Redb
chris
Guest
LRT plays are very limited role deep in defense on tall forwards, and his game is very one dimensional... that's how he does it - and he's gotten away with it because he's been surrounded by very talented and hardworking defnders and midfielders.... trust me, LRT is not a footballer's bootlace...but good on him - he has played plenty of AFL games and is sometimes pretty good but other times makes you cry with mistakes you'd see in u10s football...
chris
Guest
Gold Coast will milk the Hunt signing for publicity and I guess they're taking a 1/100 chance that he'll get good enough to hold down a secondary role in defense on the flank or pocket... if they can they'll keep Hayne on the field for the sake of publicity but keep him away from the ball... maybe he can add something but he'll be one of these rare and now extinct players who can't kick a Sherrin... Manson (carlton) and Warwick Capper (Sydney) are two examples from the past...
MyGeneration
Roar Guru
Still doesn't explain how such a clueless blunderer can play at such a high level for so long in such a 'difficult' game. If Hunt plays as many games as Roberts-Thomson, the GC will have got its moneys' worth, on and off the field.
chris
Guest
Name one player that is more clueless that Lewis Roberts Thomson... he is out there on his own with daylight second. He is so ill-at-ease on the field and it is obvious that his junior AFL pedigree is thin or non-existant... his junior career was in Rugby Union and it shows. Don't get me wrong, occasionally he puts in good games (and in Grand Finals he has played very well for some reason) but when he has the ball in his hands you always have your heart in your mouth. He is a fish out of water - and this is probably what we'll see with Hunt, that is if Hunt actually makes it into the Gold Coast team on a regular basis.
Mick from Giralang
Guest
But..but...he's the next Michael Voss...
MyGeneration
Roar Guru
Chris, there must be a lot of AFL players who don't really understand AFL and make even more constant blunders for Roberts-Thomson to play so many games for the Swans. Not really a good argument for the difficulty of playing AFL.
chris
Guest
Hunt hasn't even played a game yet!?....and far from being portrayed a "God" when people saw a media package showing him kicking a Sherrin some in the Melbourne dubbed him "the worst kick in the AFL"... My 14 yr old son has a far better kick than Hayne - and so do most of his team mates. The Hunt signing is a stunt...that's all it is. I said it above, someone like Paul Roos has said a player like Hunt would get 100K and play in the seconds....he won't even be regarded as an average player let alone a "god"...Hunt will be back playing RL after one season in the AFL.
Mick from Giralang
Guest
You've gotta laugh at the AFL cheerleaders on this thread. If Hayne had signed with AFL he'd have been portrayed as God's gift to the sport, just like Hunt was.
chris
Guest
It's all talk though isn't it? Did he sign a deal? GWS starts in 2012 so Hayne won't even be available - if he was thinking GWS he would not have signed to 2013 with Parra. The only realistic move in 2014 will be to RUnion.
chris
Guest
More exaggeration. GC did not throw $1m at an NRL player - the K Hunt deal was reported in the hysterical QLD media as $1m but was later corrected to $700K. Paranoid reports about RL players being poached by the AFL are nonsense - and in the one case where it has actually happened (Hunt) it is far more likely to fail than succeed. Perhaps GC will carry Hunt on the field as a publicity stunt but if he's as bad as his 'highlight' package showed then you wouldn't expect him to make much of an impact. If Hunt makes the regular team he will probably be like Lewis Roberts Thomson for the Swans - a rugby player who doesn't really understand AFL football and who makes constant blunders.
chris
Guest
yes i think GWS are trying to focus locally but you'd expect that most (if not all) players they will put on the park in their first few years will be from WA, SA and Vic... the Swans have been around for 20+ years and even now only have a few NSW players - and in this year's draft did not take up a single NSW based player..... there may be a few local kids in the squad but don't expect to see many locals in the senior team for a few seasons... personally i think it'll be a couple generations before the AFL sees sufficient junior numbers to develop a decent standard of junior football in NSW... at the moment there is quite a gap in standard between junior AFL in WA/SA/Vic compared to NSW (and I have seen both).... in NSW the playing numbers for AFL are too low and NSW kids aren't getting the same exposure to quality club football and school football on a weekly basis, and therefore the better NSW players that do come through are underdone compared to players from the other states...and it's harder for these NSW players to make it...
TammyS
Roar Rookie
I think he's more likely to switch to union when he's contracts up, if he were to switch codes. I agree he's not built for afl
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
Hayne talked about coming back from Melbourne LAST WEEK, not a few years ago.
TammyS
Roar Rookie
Essendon trained with the parramatta eels a few years back, it had nothing to do with jarryd hayne and trying to sway him over. I think GWS did approach him. If GC can throw $1million on an nrl player thats only played 1 year of aussie rules, I wouldnt rule it past them.
M1tch
Roar Guru
2012 his contract ends..i dont think he is built for AFL unless he drops about 10 kgs and they train him to run, he isnt quick
Forgetmenot
Guest
If he had gone to the new Greater Western Sydney AFL team he alone would have almost doubled the popularity of the code overnight. I think Sheedy will now focus on growing the grassroots football in the region rather than trying to poach any rugby league stars. Does anyone know when Israel Folau comes off contract, now he is pretty much built for football. ...
chris
Guest
Hayne has trained with Essendon in past seasons but nothing came of it... my main point is that RL players like K Hunt and Hayne aren't even guaranteed to ever it make into an AFL team let alone be offered $1m per season. Yes there may be some short term publicity value in it for Gold Coast and GWS to talk to RL players as they get established but not many RL players are a genuine prospect of playing AFL.... reports about the threat of the AFL poaching RL players is greatly exaggerated... When Paul Roos (Sydney Swans coach) was asked about Gold Coast signing K Hunt he said that he'd be offering a player like Hunt about $100K per season and would play him in the seconds - that's what K Hunt is actually worth as a AFL footballer but he's being paid about $700K because he's good publicity for Gold Coast.... the K Hunt deal is a one off - it won't be repeated... I don't think Hayne was talked to by GWS...perhaps another Melbourne club had a look but then nothing happened did it?
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
Hmm, yet Hayne in his press conference for the signing had just come back from Melbourne, and talked about kicking a Sherrin around. I really doubt that was the first time, and your kidding yourself if you think that the AFL didn't at least talk to him about coming over, given his profile this year. As for Hunt, I am not surprised he can't kick, as he rarely does in general play, while someone like Hayne kicks a lot, and understands how the ball works.