The extreme leaves Benetton: “My family has sacrificed a lot for me over the years, so that I could follow my dream and now it’s time to put them first”
TREVISO. Benetton Rugby announces that the player Jayden Hayward, whose contract that binds him to the Lions will expire on 30 June 2021, will leave the green-and-white club at the end of the current sporting season to return to Australia. The extreme born in 1987, New Zealander by birth, arrived in Treviso in 2014 and to date has worn our colors for 121 occasions, scoring 303 points and making himself an icon of the recent history of Benetton Rugby.
The explanation of the choice to go home in the words of Hayward: “At the end of the season I will return to Australia. It was an extremely difficult decision for me, but one that I felt necessary. After the Six Nations 2020 I gave up international rugby due to my son’s health problems. Although most of these problems have been overcome at the moment, we have decided that the lifestyle in Australia will be more suitable for my child who has autism and attention deficit / hyperactivity disorder. My family has sacrificed a lot for me over the years so that I could follow my dream and now it’s time to put them first. In these seven years I hope to have made my mark on Benetton and to have contributed to the growth of the club. I feel I have given 100% and will forever be happy to have been a part of this team. I would like to thank all the players, the coaches, the managers and, above all, the fans. The favorite memory of these years is certainly entering the field with my son Noah on the occasion of my 100th match with Benetton, embellished by the victory in front of a full and festive Monigo Stadium. Treviso will always have a special place in my heart. This is where Noah was born, a city of which we will have many good memories, places I could only dream of. I will always be grateful for this amazing opportunity. Come on Leoni “
“From the whole club the warmest thanks to Jayden for the seven seasons spent in green and white. A player who since his arrival, despite the club going through an unhappy period, has managed to put the team on his shoulders thanks to his splendid sporting and human qualities. An athlete who has left his mark in this club, and who most likely, albeit with different characteristics, together with Dingo Williams is among the strongest extremes who have ever worn the green-and-white jersey. At the base of Jayden’s decision, as he explained, there are personal reasons and therefore as a club we can only show all our closeness to him and his loved ones aware of the fact that he can always count on the Benetton Rugby family, hoping that one day we will be able to meet again, perhaps in other guises ”the words of the sporting director Antonio Pavanello.