Hayne fires a shot at Gallop
JARRYD Hayne has handed an early Christmas present to league fans - and a grim yuletide warning to the NRL: Stop acting the Scrooge.
With the ink barely dry on his three-year contract extension at Parramatta, Hayne launched into a thoughtful missive on behalf of NRL superstars who he believes are being short-changed by salary-cap restrictions.
Although Hayne will earn up to $2 million over the course of his extended deal once third-party arrangements are finalised, the code's No. 1 player knows that rejecting AFL advances cost him a salary worth at least twice that amount.
Speaking after hundreds of festive shoppers at Rouse Hill Town Centre witnessed him putting pen to paper on centre stage, Hayne said recent negotiations with the NRL had made him appreciate why so many stars had switched codes in recent years.
He effectively called on the NRL to relax demands on third-party agreements - which stipulate that players must work in return for their sponsorship - to help clubs compete with cashed-up rugby union and AFL franchises. Hayne expressed his concerns to David Gallop in a private meeting two weeks ago, but the NRL boss continues to stand firm.
"It seems like the NRL is letting them go," Hayne said. "It would be good to see the NRL step in. They've let a lot of big-time players go.
"When you lose a lot of quality players the question has to be asked: 'How many more players are they going to let go?' "
Hayne's agent Wayne Beavis said his client's youth had worked in the NRL's favour on this occasion, with the Dally M medallist still searching for a maiden premiership ring and State of Origin series win.
But Hayne said fellow elite players who had achieved every honour - such as Johnathan Thurston and Greg Inglis - faced a "tough headache" to stay in league.
"We can't wait forever," he said. "We can't wait for another four years when it will hit them in the head and then say, 'Let's do something about it now'.
"I know Greg [Inglis] re-signed last year, but when he comes off contract there's going to be some massive questions asked about him. Players like me ... you want to play against the best. You don't want to see them go. We lost Sonny Bill Williams, Mark Gasnier and Craig Gower. You don't want to see them go."
Hayne confirmed he received "interest" from the AFL's Greater Western Sydney (GWS) franchise, but could not imagine playing elsewhere at such a tender stage in his career. Although his re-signing was not made official until 5:37pm, he actually signed a letter of intent with Parramatta in October.
But he refused to rule out a switch to AFL or rugby in the future - and described AFL as a potential challenge when his new contract expires at the end of 2013.
"You look at someone like Karmichael Hunt - he's won a Grand Final and been part of a record-breaking Queensland team - it would be hard to knock back," Hayne said. "When you start off playing sport, that's the reason you play [for the challenge]."
Eels CEO Paul Osborne denied the unprecedented setting for yesterday's announcement was a shot across the bows of GWS, whose Blacktown base is located just a short punt from the new Rouse Hill development.
"Their heartland is around the water pipes over in Blacktown," Osborne quipped.
