Terrell May takes legal action against fan groups after Roosters showed him the door

It comes after the surprise news emerged last week that the Sydney Roosters were set to move on the international forward.

Roosters and Samoa forward Terrell May is reportedly set to take legal action against social media trolls after rumours swirled online after the shock news his club was set to show him the door.

Despite signing a two-year, $950,000 extension earlier this year before playing all 27 matches of the season, May was told by the Roosters he was free to find another club.

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While he represented Samoa in their two-match series against England in England, May, who hasn’t even started the extension part of his deal, will return to decide his future after the shock news.

The reason, as reported by the Sydney Morning Herald, was that “the Roosters feel May doesn’t fit the direction in which the club is heading”.

But The Daily Telegraph has reported the 25-year-old is preparing to launch legal action against three popular Facebook supporter groups over comments and rumours after the news broke last week.

The news sparked speculation there were off-field issues, while other falsely implicated May’s teammate and his partner.

May took to Instagram last week, denying it had anything to do with anything off-field.

Terrell May had a breakout season in 2024. Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

May’s manager David Rawlings told the Telegraph that he was ready to hold the trolls accountable.

“The business transactions of rugby league often end up in the public domain, and of course where there is limited information on hand it’s natural to speculate,” Rawlings said.

“However, when speculation becomes reputable and personally damaging – we won’t tolerate it.

“The NRL, RLPA and players themselves have done a magnificent job over the past season in calling out player abuse.

“We will hold any party to account that engages in defamatory commentary and where appropriate exercise legal recourse to do so.”

May is also seemingly a hot commodity on the open market already with three Sydney clubs reportedly already touching base with Rawlings.

There are several teams on the hunt for props including the Tigers, Dragons and Bulldogs.

May is the brother of controversial former NRL players Tyrone, 28, and Taylan, 23.

Taylan May was a former Penrith Panthers star but quit the club as he awaited a court date in March 2025 over allegations he assaulted his wife and later contravened an AVO, allegations he has pleaded not guilty to and reportedly intends to fight in court.

The Panthers had tried to sack May but lost a Federal Court battle with the club reportedly negotiating a confidential settlement to part ways.

Tyrone May’s contract was torn up after a series of scandals, including pleading guilty to four counts of intentionally recording an intimate image without consent in November 2019.

However, he was only fired after the Panthers’ 2021 premiership victory after a social media post that appeared to allude to the scandal.

Tyrone now plays for the Hull Kingston Rovers in the UK’s Super League.

Terrell shouldn’t be without a club for long. Photo: NRL Photos

While Terrell sparked a small off-field controversy over a social media post after teammate Joseph Sua’ali’i became just the sixth — and easily the fastest — send off in State of Origin history after laying out Broncos fullback Reece Walsh in a brutal hit just seven minutes into the opening match of the State of Origin series.

While Sua’ali’i apologised, May responded “HIS [sic] DEAD”, which plenty of fans hit back at.

But on the field, May had a brilliant season in 2024, with Phil Gould even declaring him a smokey for the Blues back in March.

In 27 appearances, 19 of which he came off the bench, May scored six tries, ran for 2994m at an average of 110m per game which included 64 tackle breaks and 1087 post-contact metres — the fourth most in the Roosters’ team.

On top of that, he had 40 offloads and averaged 27 tackles per game.

And Roosters forward Angus Crichton hit out at rumour mill.

“I was devastated for him,” Crichton said.

“I just want to say to people that are saying it’s got to do with off-field issues and that kind of thing, just don’t judge a book before it’s been written.

“He is literally straight as an arrow. He doesn’t drink, he is a really good guy and he hasn’t done anything off the field to warrant this.

“So for people that are speculating and talking out of tongue, just stop it, and wait until the full story comes to light. He is a good person.”

Originally published as Terrell May takes legal action against fan groups after Roosters showed him the door