Jarryd Hayne makes return to rugby league after six-year exile

Kativerata, who played his first game for Fiji with Hayne’s father Manoa Thompson, reached out to the 36-year-old after he was released from prison to check on his welfare. Conversations quickly turned to Fiji’s Pacific Championships campaign and a mentoring role.

“I rang him just to talk to him and to see how he was going,” Kativerata said.

“I wanted to make sure he was okay. He was happy to hear from us. After a while, I told him about rugby league in Fiji and how it really needed a lift. Then I asked him to come along and help with the team because I knew that it would be good for him and good for us.”

“At first he thought I was joking. But look at what he’s achieved in rugby league. And he’s a Fijian guy, so we want him to be part of it. He’s enjoying it.”

Hayne arrived in Suva on Sunday and joined the team in camp on Monday morning for the team’s training session ahead of their clash with the Papua New Guinea Kumuls in the Fiji capital on Saturday night.

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Kativerata said Hayne, who last played in the NRL in 2018, was welcomed by the group.

“The players look up to what he did on the football field,” Kativerata said.

“To have him here and help out with the young fellas in the team, it will be very good for them. I’ve known him for a long time, I know his father. He captained in my first game for Fiji.

Asked about the prospect of Hayne playing a part in the team’s campaign on the field, Kativerata was quick to play it down.