Hynes’ family turmoil
STAR’S TOUGH TIMES
SHARKS superstar Nicho Hynes has described the past few months as “the toughest time of my life” after his mum was found guilty of knowingly supplying heroin.
The case has made unwanted headlines for Hynes, who has blossomed into the face of the game after winning the Dally M Medal in 2022 in his first season with the Sharks after he made the big move from Melbourne.
Hynes is likely to be ruled out of Cronulla’s Round 1 clash against the Rabbitohs on Saturday night, but a minor leg injury is nothing compared with the pain he’s dealt with off the field.
“It’s no secret it's been a challenging time … it’s probably been the toughest time in my life,” he said. “Especially with just the way it’s been spoken about in the media and seeing my mum getting dragged through the media and the way people react to it.
“It’s hard. I’m dealing with it the best I can and putting things in place so I can deal with it. I spoke to her and she’s all right and she’s doing the best she can.”
The halfback had to overcome a number of challenges on his way to the NRL but he showed in his recent man of the match performance in the All Stars game that his mind is still very much on the job.
Hynes took his mum to the Dally M Awards last year and says he’ll continue to support her as they await sentencing.
“Everyone's going to have opinions on this story and they’re going to react the way they want to react but I’m going to stand by mum every step of the way in this and be there for her,” he said.
“I'll visit her, and what happened, I don’t think was the right outcome.
“You can't really judge on that but there’s no way in the world that I’m going to leave her high and dry now. She needs the support and I need my support.
“I'll get my support and she’ll get her support and I’m going to be there for her. Come sentencing day, I’ll probably say a little bit more and hopefully we’ll get a better outcome then.
“But, at the end of the day, it is what it is and I've got a job to do here for the Sharks and I’ve a job to do as a role model to inspire the next generation of people.”
While Hynes will miss Saturday’s game, the Sharks have received an early season boost with Jesse Ramien extending his stay in the Shire for a further three seasons.
It continues a signing spree for Cronulla, which also locked up outside backs Ronaldo Mulitalo and Siosifa Talakai on new deals, with the club confident they’ll have more good news for their fans in the coming weeks.
Ramien said he was “pleased to have it all sorted”.
“I love playing here at the Sharks. It’s been like a home away from home from the time I arrived here,” he said.