The bruises on Jackson Hastings’ body after another brutal training session are easily noticeable as he sits down to discuss a rollercoaster 12 months but it is perhaps the battle scars nobody sees – the emotional ones – which have made the 23-year-old the player and the man he is today.
“I couldn’t escape … my grandad has got all the clippings of me in the newspapers; for over 20 days in a row, I was on the back pages,” Hastings reflects when asked to describe how he coped with the problems that saw him kicked out of the NRL last year. Hastings had been tipped for greatness from a young age but following allegations of a bust-up with his Kangaroos and Manly teammate Daly Cherry-Evans he was released by the Sea Eagles.
Written by Aaron Bower
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/mar/23/jackson-hastings-salford-wigan-super-league under the title “Jackson Hastings repays Salford’s faith in turning down Wigan”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
