Hayne in Origin tribute to a sick friend
Jarryd Hayne will pull out a pen and write four letters on the strapping around his left wrist only ¬moments before tonight’s third and deciding State of Origin game at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane. The great enigma of the NSW side, a man who has been accused of not caring enough, will show his softer side to a massive audience with a tribute by writing the name of his friend Joey — who is battling illhealth — on his wrist strapping.
“It’s obviously been tough for him and his family,” the former Vodafone Fijian Bati fullback said.
“He is a close mate I grew up with. We used to knock about at Parramatta … and played a bit of poker together, got up to a bit of mischief.
“He is a bloke who has been a good guy to me. We have a lot of friends in common as well. He is going through a hard time at the moment and I’m just trying to lift his spirits. “He’s a good dude and it has been good to make him smile. I wanted to go out there and play hard for him. I know how much it means to him because we have friends in common and friends who are with him every second day.
“I have seen him a couple of times during the campaign. He had to come home from hospital and he’s just waiting now. It’s ¬pretty hectic to see how sad and terrible it is, and you do what you can to try to get him through it.”
Hayne has made the same ¬gesture before the previous two Origin games, a pair of matches that have showcased the two sides to one of the Blues’ most important players. He was among the Blues’ best in the opening win over Queensland. Then, he was chastised by supporters and high-profile experts for a pair of mistakes that went some distance to helping the Maroons square the series at ANZ Stadium.
There was speculation Hayne could pay the ultimate price and lose his place in the NSW side after ignoring an unmarked Brett Morris and then throwing an errant flick pass to the same man when cooler heads were needed.
He wasn’t the only NSW player culpable for a collapse of monumental proportions in the closing 20 minutes at ANZ Stadium. Yet arguably no player found himself in the crosshairs more as the Blues threw away the chance to win their first series since 2014.
“It was just one of those things where I guess we couldn’t put our finger on it on the night,” Hayne said. “I guess looking back now we are seeing ourselves as being a bit stagnant, not playing footy and not getting ourselves in the play.