Carl Hayman won't be able to 'waltz back in'

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Taranaki and Hurricanes rugby fans will get their pound of flesh from Carl Hayman under a unique three-way deal designed to bring the All Blacks prop back to New Zealand.

Hayman will be wearing a Taranaki jersey during this year's NPC and will link with the Hurricanes in the Super 14 till at least the end of 2012 if he agrees to the New Zealand Rugby Union terms.

Hurricanes chief executive Greg Peters said yesterday that a mercenary dash home to play in the World Cup would not be acceptable.

"Most common deals are two years. If the deal gets to a situation where he agrees with it, as I understand it, he will come back and play NPC for Taranaki this year to press for selection for next year.

"It's a statement that he wants to be part of the New Zealand framework. He's not, as we understand it, going to just waltz back in for the Tri-Nations.

"He will play the NPC and then be available for the end-of-year tour.

"We want him to be part of a group rather than just coming back, playing the World Cup and then saying `I'm off'."

Peters stressed no deal had been done, but said Hayman had wanted to return to New Zealand and go farming in the Taranaki when his playing career was over.

It was wrong to say anyone was buying Hayman a farm, he said.

"Taranaki is the province he would be contracted to and that's where the farm thing comes into it. It is not a payment to Carl Hayman. It's Taranaki facilitating him getting into a farm.

"That means pointing him in the right direction and, potentially through other means, to help him on to a farm. It doesn't mean Taranaki's buying him a farm. It's part of the total package."

Hayman's package would include three parts, with the NZRU, with Taranaki, and with the Hurricanes, who are keen to see a front row of Hayman, Andrew Hore and Neemia Tialata.

The Hurricanes will effectively step in to facilitate the extra funding needed to match Hayman's contractual requirements.

That will mean seeking additional funding from a sponsor by way of providing his image rights in a third-party deal.

"That's not dissimilar to other agreements. Richie's [McCaw] got one with Mastercard ... they are reserved for the top-level players because they need to be of a playing calibre that a third party or sponsor is interested in using their services.

"We've [Wellington] already had a number of our players under intellectual property agreements."

Peters was confident that at 31, Hayman was worth the effort being put into his return. He hoped to know in the "next few weeks" whether the prop would be playing for Taranaki and the Hurricanes.

- © Fairfax NZ News