Former Parramatta Eels star Jarryd Hayne has returned to top-flight footy by joining Fiji’s team for rugby league’s upcoming Pacific Championship, just four months after he was released from jail when his rape conviction was quashed.
The 36-year-old will act as a mentor for the side after being invited into their camp for the tournament, which begins on Friday.
Hayne played 120 matches for Fiji from 2008 to 2018 and also played five games for the nation’s rugby union Sevens team, and described his new position as ‘awesome’ on Monday.
‘On the way to the airport yesterday, watching that documentary from the ’08 [Rugby League World Cup] squad following us in the village, it’s been a long journey … 16 to 17 years,’ he said.
‘From army barracks, to now we’re in five-star hotels. We’ve come a long way. It’s always good to reminisce.’
Fiji coach Wise Kativerata contacted Hayne after he was released from jail and the appointment developed from there.
‘I rang him just to talk to him and see how he was going,’ Kativerata told the Sydney Morning Herald.
‘I wanted to make sure he was OK. He was happy to hear from us.
Former Parramatta Eels star Jarryd Hayne has returned to top-flight footy by joining Fiji’s team for rugby league’s upcoming Pacific Championship
Hayne (pictured outside court after his sexual assault charges were officially dropped) is returning to top-flight footy with the Fijian rugby league team
The ex-Parramatta star (pictured playing for the Eels in 2014) will be working as a mentor for the national side during the Pacific Championship, which starts this Friday
The 36-year-old is pictured being released from jail after serving time over a rape conviction that was later quashed
‘After a while I told him about rugby league in Fiji and how it really needed a lift.
‘Then I asked him to come along and help with the team because I knew it would be good for him and good for us.
‘At first he thought I was joking.’
The NRL has approved Hayne’s job with the team.
In August, Sydney-based rugby union club Two Blues offered the ex-star the chance to play for them as he was spotted training with famed sprint coach Roger Fabri, who is known for his work with NRL players like James Tedesco and Josh Addo-Carr.
Hayne, 36, was released from prison on June 12 after his convictions were quashed, having spent more than a year behind bars after a jury in April 2023 found him guilty of two counts of sexual intercourse without consent.
The decision by the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal brought an end to a six-year saga that saw the two-time Dally M winner face three trials after he was accused of raping a woman in Newcastle on NRL grand final night in 2018.
After winning back his freedom, Hayne has kept a low profile as he has reintegrated himself into life with his family.
He once commanded a million-dollar salary and hundreds of thousands in sponsorship deals at the height of his glittering footy career.
But Hayne is now a far cry from the man who was in 2015 predicted to become Australia’s highest-paid sportsman.
The legal ordeal has had a devastating impact on his finances, eroded by years of legal fees – a situation made worse by the fact he was allegedly swindled out of $780,000 by a fellow inmate in a Bitcoin scam.
Lyall Mercer, a public relations and crisis communications strategist, said it was ‘unfortunate that we live in an age where reputation is defined by social media commentary and speculation rather than facts’.
At the height of his fame, Hayne played for the San Francisco 49ers in the NFL (pictured) after winning two Dally M Medals as the best player in the NRL
‘Everyone deserves due process and Jarryd has been through the legal process which has ultimately decided that at this stage he is still innocent until proven guilty,’ he told Daily Mail Australia.
‘If there is no retrial he will remain innocent, despite what anyone thinks.
‘Jarryd has a journey ahead of him to rebuild his reputation which has been destroyed.
Mercer pointed out that the NRL, where Hayne was twice awarded the Dally M medal for player of the year, is littered with stars who have been found guilty of crimes but have been offered opportunities to restore their reputations.
‘So it would be hypocritical if they (the NRL) did anything less than offer Jarryd – who at this stage has not been convicted – support and welcome him back into their community,’ Mercer said.
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