Speculation spread quickly in Wollongong on Friday afternoon about what Jarryd Hayne was doing in town when he was spotted having lunch at The Meatery.
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Hayne is known to have family in the Nowra area and Meatery general manager Mat Price said he was very friendly to everyone.
Mr Price said he seemed to really enjoy his time on the Wollongong foreshore and was very relaxed.
“Jarryd was in for lunch today with about a dozen friends and family, no doubt enjoying a catch up family and Parramatta player Tim Mannah,” Mr Price said.
“They stayed in the venue for around two hours and all really enjoyed their experience. The Hayne Plane was seen taking photos of his coffee; no doubt has been missing good soy Cappuccinos. Lovely guy and really nice table of people. He took numerous photos with guests on his way out and said thanks.”
City Beach Function Centre general manager Mark Davie said no one knew he was coming before he arrived but the staff at The Meatery recognised him straight away.
Mr Davie said he was aware he had been talking to The Roosters but there was nothing he saw that would link him to having any discussions with the Dragons.
“There was a booking made under another name,” Mr Davie said.
“There was no one I knew of locally with him. It wasn’t like Paul McGregor was there or anyone else from the Dragons. And he was happy to be in a photo with one of our Meatery boards. We gave him plenty of space.”
Hayne's fate in controversial coach's hands
Jarryd Hayne's future in the NFL is set to be decided by controversial figure Chip Kelly, the man named the new head coach of San Francisco 49ers on Thursday (Friday morning AEDT).
Kelly was sacked by Philadelphia before last season ended after three years in the role, with the Eagles showing him the door after a hugely disappointing 7-9 season in the NFC East.
According to reports, Philadelphia sacked Kelly because they wanted a coach who could relate better to the players after he overhauled the team's squad and traded away several big-name stars.
After Kelly was sacked by Philadephia, former Eagles cornerback Brandon Boykin told the Pittsburgh Tribune: "You can't trick players or pretend to be someone you're not if the results aren't there.
"The guys who were man enough to make a difference and do something about it were axed or (Kelly) acted like there were sour grapes or whatever."
Running back LeSean McCoy, who was traded to the Buffalo Bills, also aimed an astonishing racism allegation at his former coach, saying "there's a reason he got rid of all the black players."
"You see how fast he got rid of all the good players. Especially all the good black players. He got rid of them the fastest. That's the truth. There's a reason. ... It's hard to explain with him", he told ESPN last year.
Hayne made the 49ers' 53-man roster in September but was cut mid-season and signed to the practice squad before being restored to the active roster for the final two weeks of the season following a litany of injuries to the team's running backs.
San Francisco endured a torrid campaign and finished 5-11, leading to head coach Jim Tomsula being fired after his first season in the role.
Reacting to the news, Sacramento Bee reporter Matt Barrows called Kelly a "controversial and mostly successful architect of football's fastest-paced offenses"
Barrows reveals that some players "complained that Kelly worked them too hard and was so accustomed to college players he didn't know how to deal with professional athletes" during his time in charge of the Eagles.
Former Parramatta Eels star Hayne is currently in Australia on holiday and will return to off-season training in April where he will get the chance to convince the 49ers coaching staff to keep him on.
Kelly is understood to be keen on retaining out-of-favour quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who was benched after eight games last season.
