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No athlete wants to be injured but in the case of Gold Coast Titans star Jarryd Hayne a month off could fix more than his ankle ligaments.
Hayne must have a thumping headache after the recent storm over his poor attitude to training over summer at the Titans.
The 'Hayne Plane' had already suffered off-season turbulence. In November last year he was warned by the NRL not to associate with criminals following an integrity commission investigation.
In addition, while appearing at a cyber awareness seminar at a high school, he was embarrassed by a phone hacker.
Now Hayne has at least four weeks off on doctor's orders because of an ankle injury and this will give him time to clear his head and focus on his future.
He will not get a better chance to contemplate his options, free from the spotlight and the demands of playing while keeping the physio company.
One deadline is looming. He has until May to take up a $1 million option with the Titans for 2018.
Last month Hayne said there was no guarantee he would stay at the Titans. He said he would consider any offer from any sport.
"I like to broaden my horizons. It might even be a different adventure that isn't sport at all," Hayne told the Courier Mail.
For all the fanfare late last season, it must have been an anti-climax to return to the NRL after scaling the heights of American football with the San Francisco 49ers and having a tilt at playing rugby sevens for Fiji at the Rio Olympics.
In 2014 Hayne "wanted to take a risk". He walked away from adulation and a fat new contract at Parramatta to chase a dream to play NFL.
Doubters thought it was an impossible dream. Having reached an unreachable star, he switched his dream to becoming an Olympian.
That brought derision even from supporters, who were essentially asking the question - is he going to climb every mountain until he finds his dream?
Then Hayne's Olympic bubble burst and he did not make the trip to Rio. The epic was over.
Three weeks later, back in rugby league, it must have felt like jetlag after an exhilarating holiday. He openly admitted the Titans were not his preferred NRL destination.
So what is next?
Hayne is 29 years old. His remaining years as a footballer are less than a tackle count. He is a recent first-time father with family responsibilities just beginning.
League or union will reward him handsomely but how high a priority is money?
The triple code-crosser has decisions to make. Which code? Which club? Which country? He can choose from Australia, New Zealand, France, England or Japan.
Does he burn to win an NRL premiership? He lost his only grand final in 2009 with the Eels.
Does he want the high of State of Origin again? He has appeared in 20 Origin matches and played a key role in New South Wales' rare series win in 2014.
Is there any ambition to play for the Wallabies?
Does he want to reinvigorate his spirit with Fiji in this year's Rugby League World Cup? The Fijian camp for the 2008 World Cup was a life-changing experience for him.
An enforced break will give Hayne the space to chew over what he really wants next. An injury steals the joy of sport but it allows you to reassess what is important.
It can make you hungry and remind you of why you loved to play as a kid or it can make you wonder why you bother.
Hayne will be searching for a new dream and now is the time to find it.
Topics: nrl, rugby-league, sport, rugby-union, american-football, robina-4226
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