Jackson Hastings is "extremely grateful" to Salford Red Devils for reviving his career and hopes to show people he is "actually not a bad person" after his controversial exit from the NRL.

Hastings was released by Manly Sea Eagles last year having initially been demoted from the first team following a much-publicised fall-out with Daly Cherry-Evans, although the former insists the incident was blown out of all proportion.

After joining the Red Devils on a short-term basis in July, the talented half-back helped the club secure their Super League status for another year and is now hoping to spring a few surprises in 2019.

Hastings told Omnisport: "I'm extremely grateful [to Salford]. I've done a few interviews now where I've touched on what could have been and, to be honest with you, I could just be sitting at home working and playing part-time rugby league. That's the position I was in. 

"So I suppose words don't really do it justice for how grateful I am. I think you can tell by the way I play and compete that I really want to pay it all back, not only to the fans but to the club."

Getting them last few kicks in, Don’t need a tee over here. The snow/ice will do! #CaptainsRun pic.twitter.com/fTUn7pjcMl

— Jackson Hastings (@JackoHastings) January 31, 2019

Having spoken openly about the turmoil he faced towards the end of his stint at Manly, Hastings was a bubbly and exceedingly polite presence at Super League's official season launch, where he discussed an upcoming documentary providing an insight into his life.

"I suppose I've always been taught, as most young males are taught, to hold on to a lot of stuff and not show any sign of weakness. It got to a point midway through last year where I broke really and I sort of had to start opening up to people and letting them know how I felt," he added.

"I've got a little documentary thing coming out on social media shortly, hopefully, that gives a bigger insight into where I come from, what I've had to deal with and why I am the way I am. It will be pretty cool for people to see that and understand that I'm actually not a bad person. I've just been through a little bit that I haven't ever spoken about really."

Asked about the manner of his NRL exit, Hastings said: "It took me a lot of time to get over it, because once one person writes a lie about you, another person believes it and the knock-on effect is a number of people believing all these negative lies about you that aren't true. The hardest part about that is when someone asks you a question about something that didn't happen and you're sort of sitting there going, 'whoa, this didn't happen'. 

"Once I learned that people are going to have their opinion on you, no matter what, without knowing the truth, it was easy to get over and I just understood it's a part of life. I'm not the only one who's gone through it."

Hastings is now focused on ensuring a Salford side featuring plenty of exciting backline talent can exceed expectations in the new Super League season, beginning with a trip to Huddersfield Giants on Friday.

24 hours.

#TogetherStronger pic.twitter.com/sjxt35pVp7

— Salford Red Devils (@SalfordDevils) January 31, 2019

"To win our first two games is important - and you can't look past Huddersfield," said the Australian. "We've got a squad now that means teams can't just team up on Rob Lui or another individual; they've got to watch us all over the park.

"I think we've got a squad that the Salford community can be proud of and cheer on, but I also think we've got a squad that teams have got to look out for."