NRL news: Tyrone May poised to join Mitchell Pearce in Super League
Tyrone May has a path to reviving his rugby league career, one that could see him partnered with a 300-game NRL star.
Panthers
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The opportunity to mature and develop his game has led to Tyrone May being on the verge of quitting the NRL for Super League club Catalans.
May and his management have been in negotiations with the French Super League club for the past 10-days with the progressive talks leading to the likelihood of the Penrith utility partnering Mitchell Pearce in the halves overseas.
Pearce is edging towards a release from Newcastle to join Catalans on a three-year deal while May has one foot on a plane to France.
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The 25-year-old, who played 56 NRL-games for Penrith, had his contract terminated by the Panthers board following a distasteful Instagram post he shared in the wake of the club’s NRL grand final success. May had 12-months remaining on his contract at the Panthers.
A direct link to the May deal has been Alex Chan, the Catalans general manager of football.
Chan coached May in Penrith‘s under-18 SG Ball team which finished as grand final runners-up in 2014.
Another voice of support has been James Maloney, who ended his career with Catalans this year. Maloney played with May at Penrith in 2018.
May, who can play almost any position in the backline, has also been encouraged by Penrith officials to reignite his career and develop his game away from the NRL spotlight in the English Super League before considering a possible return to Australia.
May’s increasing off-field issues would also have made his hopes of scoring a contract at a rival NRL club slim.
May’s departure from Penrith is in addition to the premiers losing Matt Burton (Bulldogs), Brent Naden (Bulldogs), Kurt Capewell (Broncos) and Paul Momorovski (Roosters).
The Panthers last week signed Warriors half Sean O‘Sullivan for 2022 to counter the dent to their depth of talent next season.
SACKED PANTHER’S RAY OF HOPE FOR NRL REVIVAL
By Brent Read
Axed Penrith utility Tyrone May has been given hope that his rugby league exile may not be permanent after NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo revealed the door was open for a potential return next season.
May’s ray of hope came as the NRL integrity unit prepare to close the book on their investigation into Sydney Roosters captain James Tedesco, with a final decision expected to be handed down on Wednesday.
May was sacked by the Panthers last week after the premiers lost patience with the 25-year-old, the final straw a social media post in which he appeared to take aim at those who had criticised him after he narrowly avoided jail for filming a woman without her consent.
Abdo had previously spoken about his disappointment with the behaviour of Penrith in the wake of their premiership win, most notably the use of social media by May.
However, he was in a more conciliatory mood on Tuesday when he was asked about the prospect of May finding a home again in the NRL.
“We’ll deal with any potential registration based on who the individual is and the facts available at that particular time when it is presented to us by a club and a player,” Abdo said.
“At this point we have nothing in front of us, so I won’t comment on a hypothetical. We will always be open to any proposal that is put in front of us and give it the absolute attention it requires and then make a call.
“There is no edict to say ‘player X’ can’t be registered.”
The Panthers were in the crosshairs following the grand final as their celebrations raised the ire of Abdo and the NRL. Their behaviour ultimately cost May his job and resulted in Nathan Cleary and Stephen Crichton being hit in the hip pocket for their treatment of the premiership trophy.
“I’m always disappointed when rugby league is in the headlines for the wrong reasons,” Abdo said. “It’s a concern of mine. For us, we want to make sure we’re making the best decisions and we’re in the headlines for the right reasons.
“It’s not to say any player or any person is under a cloud of not being welcome in our game. That’s a big call. We don’t make those calls too often.
“Any registration for any player that is put to us by a club and the player is considered, we run through a due process, we do it very fair and objectively, so there are no constraints around that.”
While May is set to spend some time out of the game, Tedesco should know his fate as early as Wednesday.
A woman of Vietnamese descent claimed Tedesco yelled “Squid Games” – a reference to the popular Korean show on Netflix – at her when the Roosters, NSW and Australian star was on a night out in the eastern suburbs nearly two weeks ago.
Tedesco, the woman at the centre of the claims and her sister have all been spoken to by the integrity unit and Abdo confirmed the NRL was close to handing down their findings.
“We have been actively investigating and hope to conclude that investigation this week,” Abdo said. “It’s a matter we take really seriously. The allegations were pretty serious, we want to make sure we do a thorough investigation and then comment on it afterwards.
Brother backs May with inflammatory post
-Michael Carayannis, Brent Read
The younger brother of sacked Penrith player Tyrone May has told people to “keep hating” just moments after his brother was axed.
Taylan May is considered a rising star in his own right. The 20-year-old is contracted to the Panthers and made his NRL debut this year.
However his future may now come under scrutiny after he hit out at his brother’s axing.
“Realist one always stayed loyal to bad loyalty gets you no where,” May wrote as a caption to a photo of him standing alongside his brother with the NRL trophy.
“It’s always just business. Head up we move forward no matter what.”
It comes as Tyrone May’s premiership afterglow lasted less than a month. On Wednesday, his pleas for clemency were ignored as the Penrith board decided there was no room in the club for the versatile half.
He had run out of chances as the Panthers acknowledged their “responsibilities to the game, our corporate partners, our members and fans, and the wider rugby league community”.
Within moments of May’s dismissal becoming official, Penrith captain Nathan Cleary was in the crosshairs after he used social media to show support for his friend, former teammate and housemate.
Cleary posted an image of he and May accompanied by the words: “My brother no matter what got you always.” The timing prompted a backlash given the wounds of May’s departure – and the comments that led to his dismissal – were still raw.
May is close to the Cleary family. He recently posted an image with Nathan’s sister Indie which prompted suggestions they were seeing each other.
The post that led to his sacking began with an image of May leaving court, flanked by Ivan Cleary.
Nathan Cleary’s motives may have been innocent. He no doubt wanted to show support for a friend.
Yet many read his tribute to his friend as another act of defiance – a failure to read the room given the fury that greeted May’s missive immediately after the grand final.
Even Penrith acknowledged May had gone too far as they terminated the one-year deal that kicked in on November 1.
“As a club we understand our responsibilities to the game, our corporate partners, our members and fans, and the wider rugby league community,” Panthers chief executive Brian Fletcher said. “The board observed due process in this matter and considered all relevant factors before reaching its final decision.
OFFICIAL. Panthers has terminated the NRL playing contract of Tyrone May with immediate effect.
— Penrith Panthers 🆠(@PenrithPanthers) November 3, 2021
📠https://t.co/q41PgIdZfYpic.twitter.com/O27qFWXuqP
“Panthers will co-ordinate with the NRL to ensure Tyrone receives access to any support services he needs moving forward.”
The Panthers stood by May when he was charged by police for filming a woman without her consent – he narrowly avoided a jail sentence after pleading guilty to four charges.
He missed the 2019 season and eventually settled a civil case with the woman involved.
However, the issue was reignited immediately following the grand final when he posted an image on social media of him leaving the court accompanied by the message: “And the dirt that they threw on my name turned to soil and I grew up out it. Time for y’all to figure out what y’all gon’ do about it. Love my brothers”.
It is understood May claimed the post had nothing to do with his court case, but was rather a shot at those who questioned whether he would make it in the game.
That didn’t wash with the NRL – he was fined $7,500 by head office – and it ultimately cost him his contract with the Panthers.
His career is now in limbo and it is understood any club wanting to sign May will need to receive a clearance from the NRL. That seems unlikely to happen.
The NRL has heard from no one and it is hard to believe any club will take a chance on him given what has happened over the past two years.
May’s departure strips the Panthers of depth as they brace to start next season without halfback and captain Nathan Cleary, who underwent shoulder surgery immediately after their premiership success.
They have, however, added former Brisbane and Warriors half Sean O’Sullivan, whose contract is expected to be confirmed within days.
O’Sullivan made his first grade debut with the Sydney Roosters three years ago before stints at the Broncos and Warriors.
He left the New Zealand side at the end of the season and was close to signing elsewhere before agreeing a deal with the Panthers for next season in what is a homecoming for the 23-year-old.
O’Sullivan starred in SG Ball for Penrith, leading the young Panthers to a grand final victory alongside current NRL stars Brian To’o and Mitch Kenny.
His path to first grade was blocked by Cleary and he opted to seek opportunities elsewhere. Now he is poised to return, where he will provide support to Cleary and his partner for Penrith and NSW, Jarome Luai.
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