The 36-year-old made over 200 appearances in the NRL for the likes of Parramatta Eels and Gold Coast Titans but there was a spell where the former Fijian and Australian star left Rugby League for American Football.
He joined the San Francisco 49ers for the 2015 NFL season, but ended his NFL career after just one season, returning to the NRL with the Titans in 2016.
However, there was a time just before signing for the Titans that Hayne was linked with a move to the then-named Leigh Centurions, with owner Derek Beaumont confirming the signing was practically done before a wedding scuppered the chances to bring Hayne to the club for the 2016 season.
When asked on a fan question and answer session on Leigh’s YouTube channel who was the one player that ‘got away’, Beaumont said: “Jarryd Hayne, the one that got away,” Beaumont confirmed on Leigh Leopards’ YouTube channel.
“I was really looking forward to it, it was done when he came back from American Football.
“Basically there was a wedding on the date when the contract was supposed to go through that morning.”
It didn’t matter too much for Leigh in 2016, with the club earning promotion to Super League via the Qualifiers.
Of course, however, they were relegated from the top flight the following season.
