It's been a wild ride for Jarryd Hayne and it only got wilder upon his return to the National Rugby League, the game he left 18 months ago to pursue a career in the NFL.His first action in the game after coming on as a reserve at the 28 minute mark was as brutal as it gets. Defending his try line, Hayne was confronted with a super-charged New Zealand Warriors backrower, Bodene Thompson, running as straight and hard as you can. Hayne, who has played full-back traditionally and is not a renowned front-on defender, punished Thompson with his right shoulder. It was a wild hit on a bigger man and stopped a certain try, marking an incredible return to the NRL for the Hayne Plane.
Advertisement
Locked in a battle with the New Zealand Warriors for a spot in the top eight, Hayne's return came in the most high-pressure of circumstances. With both teams building towards the finals Sunday's game was also brimming with players at the peak of their powers as they approach premium match fitness and conditioning. Hayne on the other end has spent the last few months dicking around with Fiji's Olympic Rugby Sevens team (which he failed to make) before sitting down to contract negotiaitons with a handful of clubs.He replaced injured Gold Coast Titans center, Josh Hoffman at the 28th minute mark and had a hand in nearly everything from then on, including a wayward pass that was intercepted by the Warriors and lead to a try at a pivotal point in the game.Hayne's preferred position is fullback from where he can pick and choose his moments to strike and use his unparrallelled ball-running ability to maximum effect. Yesterday he came on as a center before moving to a playmaking role at 5/8, a position which requires him to coordinate attacking plays rather be the strike weapon on the end of them.Take away the intercept pass and his return performance was exceptional. He rattled NZ Warriors' half Shaun Johnson's cage early with a bone-crunching tackle that forced an error. His kicking game was on point, with a perfectly positioned grubber from Hayne leading to a Titans try and another force an opposition error with the Titans on attack.Elsewhere, he defused bombs, nearly came up with an intercept, was uncompromising in defence and solid in attack. Coach Neil Henry has said he will ultimately return to his favoured fullback position once he hits full form, but the signs are already there. "To think that was Jarryd's first game back, it's scary," said Warriors coach, Andrew McFadden after the match.