Eels fullback Jarryd Hayne joined the Game Plan's Front Row Forum segment on Thursday night to cover the big issues, including coaching and rumours about him leaving the club.
Sitting down with Daily Telegraph reporter Dean Richie in Cairns, Hayne said his selection in the PM's XIII to play in Papua New Guinea on Sunday and the approaching World Cup were both boosts at the end of a tough season.
Click through to watch Jarryd Hayne's full interview on Channel Ten's 'the Game Plan'
"[2013] was very disappointing and it just seemed to go from bad to worse," Hayne said.
"You definitely have those dark days where you just want to be away from everything and go to a place where you just disconnect."
"But years like this really set you up for what's ahead; when you go through the valleys, it gives you that much more appreciation when you're at the top."
"And for me personally having things like the PM's XIII and the World Cup ahead has given me that focus to keep looking forward and then when I come back, worry about next year."
"I'm really looking forward to [the World Cup] whether I'm playing for Fiji or Australia: either way I'll be over there."
With a few weeks now between him and the announcement that Coach Ricky Stuart would be leaving the Eels, Hayne says his perspective on the departure has softened.
"I was very disappointed at the start," Hayne told Ritchie.
"But now looking back, you understand some of his motives in leaving."
"For us it's just given us an opportunity to find a coach, a fresh coach; I think it can be a good thing for the club."
And on the topic of a rumoured move to the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, Hayne admitted that he hadn't considered leaving the blue and gold.
"That was obviously an approach from [the Bulldogs], and for me it was something that I don't think I could ever do," Hayne said.
"If I was ever going to leave Parramatta it would be if the club didn't want me."
Sitting down with Daily Telegraph reporter Dean Richie in Cairns, Hayne said his selection in the PM's XIII to play in Papua New Guinea on Sunday and the approaching World Cup were both boosts at the end of a tough season.
Click through to watch Jarryd Hayne's full interview on Channel Ten's 'the Game Plan'
"[2013] was very disappointing and it just seemed to go from bad to worse," Hayne said.
"You definitely have those dark days where you just want to be away from everything and go to a place where you just disconnect."
"But years like this really set you up for what's ahead; when you go through the valleys, it gives you that much more appreciation when you're at the top."
"And for me personally having things like the PM's XIII and the World Cup ahead has given me that focus to keep looking forward and then when I come back, worry about next year."
"I'm really looking forward to [the World Cup] whether I'm playing for Fiji or Australia: either way I'll be over there."
With a few weeks now between him and the announcement that Coach Ricky Stuart would be leaving the Eels, Hayne says his perspective on the departure has softened.
"I was very disappointed at the start," Hayne told Ritchie.
"But now looking back, you understand some of his motives in leaving."
"For us it's just given us an opportunity to find a coach, a fresh coach; I think it can be a good thing for the club."
And on the topic of a rumoured move to the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, Hayne admitted that he hadn't considered leaving the blue and gold.
"That was obviously an approach from [the Bulldogs], and for me it was something that I don't think I could ever do," Hayne said.
"If I was ever going to leave Parramatta it would be if the club didn't want me."
