http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/w...yd-haynes-rugby-approach-20160722-gqbnhn.html
Australian Rugby Union sceptical of Jarryd Hayne's rugby approach
July 22 2016 - 7:02PM
Georgina Robinson
There remains a high degree of scepticism in rugby circles about Jarryd Hayne's interest in switching to the 15-man code.
Hayne impressed Australian Rugby Union boss Bill Pulver when he turned up, unexpectedly, to a meeting between Pulver and Hayne's manager, Wayne Beavis, at rugby headquarters this week.
The well-spoken code-hopper talked about his passion for new experiences and new challenges, and seemed interested in playing out his career in French rugby, a scenario that could dovetail nicely with a couple of mutually beneficial seasons in Australian rugby and the Japanese Top League.
He told Pulver he wanted to live in Sydney, which makes the Waratahs the natural choice for the former Kangaroos and Fiji sevens player.
The ARU indicated that while it could not offer him any money directly – owing to Hayne's ineligibility for the Wallabies – it offered the contacts and influence to help link the 28-year-old with NSW and, crucially, a Japanese club that might be willing to stump up the big bucks for a talent and profile such as Hayne's.
Three days on, however, the Hayne camp have not approached the Waratahs and, notwithstanding a strong first impression, ARU types are wondering whether the Hayne Plane is serious.
That is not rugby's inferiority complex rearing its head. Israel Folau has made a home and an impact in rugby since making the switch from AFL at the end of 2012 and the game can offer players a lucrative international career when their domestic playing days are over.
Hayne's whirlwind two years pursuing an NFL career and Olympics appearance with the world champion Fiji sevens team has created as much doubt around his staying power as it has intrigue around his next move.
Pulver indicated on Thursday the sport was not prepared to be Hayne's next jilted lover. The ARU would request a two-season commitment in return for providing Hayne with the platform to re-launch his career.
But there is also the issue of his manager's role in engineering this dalliance. Beavis, a veteran player agent who has managed the affairs of some of the game's biggest names, may become involved in the NRL's investigation into the Parramatta Eels salary cap scandal.
As revealed by Fairfax Media last week, the NRL integrity unit is examining sworn testimony from former Eels boss Scott Seward that the club paid Beavis $20,000 to recruit player Lee Mossop from the English Super League.
The integrity unit is yet to finalise its investigation, the report from which will then be handed to rugby league's Agent Accreditation Committee for review.
But the circumstances have led many to question whether a move to rugby is being conceived as a back-up strategy should Beavis not finalise a deal with the Eels before the integrity unit completes its investigation, or simply to put pressure on Parramatta to get its house in order and make Hayne an offer.
When contacted by Fairfax Media on Friday, Beavis said the Eels had not tabled an offer for the two-time Dally M winner, and that he had had no contact with the Waratahs. Parramatta, for their part, believe the secret-but-not meeting at the ARU was an outright ploy.
It is common for clubs to be played off against each other in player contract negotiations, or for meetings with rival domestic and overseas clubs to be used to leverage better offers. Few believed Folau would switch to rugby after ending his time in the AFL but, quite aside from the fact the Eels had no room under the salary cap for the former Storm and Broncos star, then-Waratahs coach Michael Cheika struck up a strong rapport with his target.
In this case, the Eels have plenty of financial firepower to secure Hayne's reported $1 million per season asking price, pending the release of troubled star Kieran Foran. The unknown factor with Hayne is his quirkiness. Backed by multi-million dollar funds manager David Paradice, he has demonstrated a propensity to follow flights of fancy, spurning sceptics and critics in pursuit of his dreams, or his financial dreams
If rugby is his next landing spot, Hayne could do a lot for a game that has a lot to offer him. He'll just have to prove a growing number of sceptics wrong.
