A 28 year old footballer with no ties at all to any one club, who has absolutely no commitments to anyone at all, decides to play for the Gold Coast Titans on easily the richest deal of his career, on a deal that will see him earn more money than 99% of players in the NRL, and the wave of anger towards his decision is overwhelming.
Why?
I can not believe some of the garbage I have read about Jarryd Haynes decision to return to the NRL over the last 48 hours. I can’t imagine what it is like to make such a positive decision about my own life and be hit with the wave of negative shit from strangers that Hayne has been met with over the last two days.
As a Rugby League supporter I loved seeing Hayne return to the game. I was so happy that he went to a club that could really use his talent on the field, and his star power off it too. When other clubs in the competition get stronger, it makes my own club more valuable. It is a good thing for the entire game that Hayne will join the Titans.
Try telling that to some of the people that jumped up and down crying bloody murder over Haynes decision though…
The Parramatta Eels
Did the Eels contact Hayne and offer him a contract? Who knows? More importantly, who cares? This is a club that is in such a mess that they have an appointed administrator in charge of them at the behest of the NSW Government. They are mired in salary cap hell, a situation they put themselves in, and the laundry list of bad decisions and stuff ups over the last few years is so long at this stage that the latest Eels atrocities have stopped being headlines and just become part of the daily news cycle.
Do you honestly believe that the Eels, by some miracle, had their shit together when it came time to talk turkey with Jarryd Hayne about rejoining the club? I don’t! Why would they? The Eels are so poorly run, why would anyone expect them to have been ready to make an offer to Hayne that was even worth looking at?
I understand that Hayne said he wanted to go back to the Eels, but look at the club. They couldn’t afford, they couldn’t offer him a decent deal….who would he even be negotiation with? Here is a tip kids, if you’re being offered a contract by a company that is under administration due to mismanagement….run! Run as far away from that situation as you can!
Betrayed Supporters
They loved Jarryd Hayne, until he did something to secure his own future, then all of a sudden Jarryd Hayne was a complete bastard. I was shocked at the negative reaction to Hayne by so many people. Sure they whole “Brand Hayne” think is vomit worthy, and only a complete arsehole has their own logo, but who is it hurting? If he wants to make a few dollars by trying to build something for himself, who cares! If he takes off, great. If it doesn’t, he gave it a go.
All of the “Hayne Supporters” that rushed out and bought a 49ers jersey not too long ago for some reason turned on him when he decided to come back to play a sport he loves. Hayne talked about just wanting to play games again…it was all fine when he was wasting away on the 49ers practice squad, but when he comes back to Australia to play football he is open to attack? Why?
I even saw people saying “What about the poor Titans player he will replace?”. You know what that is called? Life! When someone comes along that is better than you are in a competitive environment, you get replaced! That is how sport works!
Rugby Union Types
There was a split among the kick and clap brigade when it came to Jarryd Hayne. Some of them didn’t want him to sign with the ARU because they thought he would be a waste of money, while others held the opinion that the ARU would be stupid to not consider signing a player who has more talent than all of their own “home grown, grass roots” players combined.
When Hayne snubbed Rugby Union, the reaction was predictable. They didn’t want Hayne anyway, he was just a mercenary, and Rugby Union is better than that. Yeah, just ask Israel Folau and Sonny Bill Williams. Fucking leather patch wearing hypocrites…
Journalists
Heaven forbid an athlete makes a decision about his own life that doesn’t involve sucking up to journalists. There were plenty of hacks ready to sink the boot into Hayne for what they felt was an “act” he was putting on. They wanted Hayne to say his move to the Titans was just about the money, as though journalists jump ship the first chance they get when they see a better offer elsewhere.
The Battlers
Hayne isn’t worth that much money. A million dollar contract? I’m worth more than that!
The thing is, you’re not. Hayne has a skill-set that is in high demand. In the entire world there are only a few players with the ability to do what Jarryd Hayne does. Do you feel underpaid compared to Hayne? Do you have the ability to draw 10,000 people to a stadium to watch you do your job? Does the media take an interest in what you do? Do you have the ability to draw commercial interest for your employer? No? Then please, shut the fuck up!
Jarryd Hayne, like most people, can do what he wants, when he wants, and how he wants to do it. He has to live with the consequences of his decisions. You don’t have to.
So, the next time you feel rage boiling up inside you because a footballer decides to do something to secure their future, stop, look in the mirror, and realize that you are burning energy on something that has no effect on your own life at all.
