NRL 2024: Former Penrith Panthers centre Taylan May expected to explore options overseas following confidential settlement
Ex-Penrith Panthers centre Taylan May is expected to explore his options overseas following confirmation that the club had severed ties with their former player.
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Ex-Penrith centre Taylan May is expected to explore his options overseas after the Panthers confirmed on Friday morning that they had reached a confidential settlement with their former star.
May, who has been stood down under the game’s no fault stand down policy since being charged with domestic violence offences in May, still had two years remaining on a contract worth $1.2 million.
However, it is understood his legal team reached an agreement with the Panthers on Thursday night, leaving Penrith in position to apply for salary cap dispensation that would allow them to use his contract money to strengthen their roster.
While settlement agreements are usually carried in the salary cap, the May situation is out of the norm given he had been stood down and was unlikely to play before March.
The club had already foreshadowed an application for cap dispensation had May stayed on their books. Now that he is gone, it could be that some or all of his termination payment is cap exempt.
Alternatively, any amount that is included in the cap will potentially be spread over three years given May had another two years remaining on his deal.
In short, the three-time premiers are suddenly back in position to hit the open market, although any moves will need to wait until next year given the June 30 deadline for player movement has now expired.
May, meanwhile, will seek a new home, most likely in the English Super League given the no-fault stand-down rule will remain in effect in the NRL until he has his day in court early next year.
May also has family connections overseas – his brother Tyrone is currently playing with Hull KR, having headed overseas when he was shown the door at the Panthers.
The parting of the ways with Penrith ends an unsettling period for both Taylan May and the club as the parties attempted to strike a deal that would suit them both.
May had already rejected one settlement offer from the Panthers before they attempted to instigate a hearing which could have led to his sacking.
The Samoan Star headed that off by taking out a federal court injunction but the parties continued to talk in the background and they finally reached a resolution late on Thursday, only hours after this masthead revealed intimate details of the club’s failed attempt to sack him.
“May is departing the Panthers effective immediately and is seeking other opportunities,” the club said in a statement
The Panthers initially discussed a settlement with May not long after he was charged with domestic violence offences, only for his then-manager Warwick Wright to suggest the offer wasn’t suitable and future dealings should be conducted with May’s lawyer, Abdul Reslan.
May played 30 games for Penrith but he missed the 2022 and 2023 grand finals through injury.
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Originally published as NRL 2024: Former Penrith Panthers centre Taylan May expected to explore options overseas following confidential settlement
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