JARRYD Hayne has finally confirmed he will remain at the Titans next season after keeping his club in suspense right up until the last minute.

Hayne faced a deadline of midnight on May 31 to activate a one-year extension inserted in his contract when he first signed with the Titans on a deal worth $1.2 million a year.

With that deadline falling just hours after Hayne ran out in his triumphant return to the Origin arena, the drama around his decision intensified at a time when all eyes were on him.

Speaking at a press conference this morning, Titans CEO Graham Annesley admitted Hayne’s camp had not informed the club of his intention to stay until just before he ran out onto Suncorp Stadium for Origin I.

Round 20

It’s nothing less than what you might expect from a man whose life often seems like a soap opera and Annesley said the Titans never feared that their franchise player would walk away.

“I found out, to be honest, in the hours leading up to the game,” Annesley said, revealing the club waited until the following day to confirm the deal because “we didn’t want to take away in any shape or form from the game.

“It’s always good to have that put to bed but we were always confident Jarryd was going to stay.

“Although he didn’t confirm and he’s entitled to wait until that date to make his decision, but all our interaction with him, we had no indication from him that he was going to do anything else but stay.”

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Jarryd Hayne raises his arms in triumph. Source: News Corp Australia

That confidence in Hayne’s decision flies in the face of reports that the 29-year-old had in recent months put the feelers out to Sydney clubs to see if any of the Titans rivals were prepared to make a play to bring him back to the Harbour City.

In the end those discussions came to nothing, with clubs including the Eels and the Roosters reportedly unprepared to meet the superstar’s asking price, resulting in Hayne’s ultimate deadline day decision.

“Every player in the NRL’s a professional player, they’d be silly if they didn’t at least explore their options,” was Annesley’s response to the possibility that Hayne was looking elsewhere.

Hayne did not front the cameras to explain from his point-of-view why his decision to stay was delayed for so long, but he was quoted in a media release sent out by the Titans.

“I’m very happy at the Titans and with the talent we have here I see a bright future for the club,” Hayne said.

“Although we’ve had a rough start to the season with injuries, I’m looking forward to helping our push for the finals this year, and continuing to improve as a club in 2018.

“I had a lot to consider with family and friends based in Sydney, but I’m really enjoying life on the Gold Coast which did help with my decision.”

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Hayne has had a rough start to life on the glitter strip, with his attitude to pre-season training questioned and signs of a rift with the club developing when he Tweeted: “Loose lips sink ships” after it emerged that Hayne had been fined by the Titans for skipping a training session to fly to Sydney.

Injury interrupted his start to the 2017 season but he has shown promising signs since his return, starring in wins over the Sharks and the Knights after he was shifted from fullback to left centre.

His form continued on an upward trend in Origin I, with Hayne giving opposition centre Justin O’Neill nightmares as the Blues thumped Queensland 28-4.

Annesley touched on that performance, saying: “Jarryd showed last night the sort of value he can deliver and we hope to see more of that from him back at the Titans.”

Titans coach Neil Henry has found it difficult to get the best out of Hayne on a consistent basis but said he was optimistic that would start to turn.

“As I’ve said since Jarryd arrived, he is an impressive player and someone that brings with him a wealth of experience, talent and ability,” Henry said.

“I look forward to continuing to work with Jarryd in 2018 and along with other players in our squad as we strive to be a consistent performer in the NRL.”