Jackson Hastings has spoken for the first time about his disappointment at having to leave Wests Tigers with a year to run on his deal, declaring: “I wanted to be there, I wanted to win there, I wanted to be a part of that next wave that helped the Tigers play finals footy.”
Hastings has become an instant fan favourite in Newcastle, just as he was with long-suffering Tigers fans who appreciated his passion and commitment in a losing side most weeks.
Jackson Hastings at training with the Newcastle Knights.
The playmaker said he had no idea if his public support for sacked coach Michael Maguire played any part in his early exit, but was also grateful to forge a lifelong friendship with “Madge”, someone he still speaks to several times a week.
Signed with the Knights until the end of 2025 – and the favourite to wear Andrew Johns’ famous No.7 jersey come round one – Hastings could not have looked happier as he and his teammates paid a Christmas visit to John Hunter Children’s Hospital on Wednesday.
But it was not all smiles about six weeks ago when it emerged David Klemmer was leaving Newcastle for the Tigers, and Hastings was the Tiger included in the summer swap.
“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed,” Hastings told the Herald. “I wore my heart on my sleeve at every training session and every game.
Wests Tigers’ Jackson Hastings celebrates kicking the winning field goal against the Eels.Credit:Getty
“Whether I wasn’t wanted or wasn’t needed, it took me a few days to get over it because I was angry at the fact I wanted to be there and be a part of the solution, not the problem.
“There were a few days there I was angry and hated the world for a bit.
“But I’m a big boy, I’ve been in way worse situations than what has just gone on. I still love the club, and when I say I want them to do well, I genuinely mean it.
“I’ve got no hard feelings towards anyone at the Tigers. When I go back to Leichhardt in round two, hopefully I’m not booed because I really do love the club and enjoyed the year I had there.
“Hopefully both clubs go on to make the finals next year and we meet in a big game.”
Hastings knows his move saved new Tigers coach Tim Sheens from trying to fit him, Luke Brooks and Adam Doueihi into the two starting halves positions.
The move to Newcastle would also promote healthy competition for starting spots in the halves. As it stands, Hastings, whose preferred position is halfback – not lock forward where he would have played at the Tigers – is likely to pair with Tyson Gamble or Kalyn Ponga, who has been training at five-eighth.
Hastings’ comments on Maguire will quickly explain why he was so gutted him when the coach was sacked in the middle of another disastrous season.
“I would have done anything on the field for Madge, and probably off the field as well – he made me feel like I was 10 foot tall and could run through a brick wall,” Hastings said.
“We still talk two or three times a week, and it’s not even about football. He’ll ask me about my family, my mum, my sisters – it’s a special relationship that happens every so often with people you meet. I have a mate for life.”
Hastings is familiar with many of the Knights players, including Adam Clune, who has been a good friend for 20 years, and Jack Hetherington, who he played under-20s with at the Sydney Roosters.
Adam Elliott was also a teammate in the NSW combined high schools side, Hastings was a ballboy for a few junior teams Tyson Frizell played in, and said with a laugh that he knew Dane Gagai because “of a few run-ins on the field”.
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