- Roosters set to offer Jennings footy lifeline
- Superstar was given a three-year doping ban
- Was accused of sexual assault by ex-wife
The Sydney Roosters are reportedly ready to offer former NRL star Michael Jennings a career lifeline with a train and trial contract for 2024 following his three-year doping ban.
The 35-year-old former premiership-winning center last played for the Eels in 2020 and is keen to revive his career with his former club.
The Daily Telegraph reported that the Roosters will make the offer to Jennings, who would add experience to their talent-rich side – but his inclusion in the team could raise eyebrows among fans, and not just because of his age.
Chooks coach Trent Robinson coached Jennings for three seasons during his time at the club and is reportedly interested in giving him another chance.
He will earn just $1,200 a week in the role, well below the $600,000 he once took home as one of the game’s highest-paid centers.
The Roosters are set to offer Michael Jennings a train and trial contract for 2024, a move that could prove controversial among the club’s fans.
Jennings, 35, is interested in returning to football after a three-year doping ban and some intense legal drama
If Jennings plays first grade he will earn $3000, but train-and-trial players are not eligible to be chosen until after round 11 – unless approved by the NRL.
Jennings was suspended from the sport in 2020 after testing positive for two performance-enhancing drugs.
In 2021, he accepted a three-year doping ban, which was retroactive to 2020.
After accepting his NRL ban, Jennings hinted he could make a comeback in the future.
“One day I would love to return to the great game, but for now it is on hiatus,” he wrote on Instagram in October 2021.
“I’m focusing on my children and working until 2023.”
In 2022, Jennings had his assets frozen by the court after he was ordered to pay nearly half a million dollars in damages in a civil lawsuit.
His ex-wife, Kirra Wilden, sought damages against the former star center after she claimed he abused her during the relationship.
The allegations include that Jennings raped her four times between October 2014 and early 2016, the star claims.
Jennings was never charged on these allegations.
Jennings’ ex-wife Kirra Wilden claimed the former footy star sexually assaulted her. In her civil case against the football player, he had to pay her almost $500,000
Jennings reportedly thought about doing a deal with an overseas side before a Roosters return was on the table.
If he gets the green light from the NRL, Jennings will have the opportunity to surpass the 300-game mark.
Jennings was regarded as one of the NRL’s premier centers during a 298-game, 13-year career in the top flight, where she played with the Penrith Panthers, Sydney Roosters and Parramatta Eels.
He played 18 Origin games for NSW and represented Australia seven times between 2009 and 2015.