‘Prove to them why they got rid of me was stupid’: May ready for Roosters

5 hours ago 4

You would think Terrell May has had this game marked on his calendar from the start of the year.

Sunday, July 6, round 18: the first time May comes up against his former club, the Sydney Roosters. The same club who unceremoniously punted him for reasons that have never been properly articulated.

“To be honest, I don’t look ahead on the schedule – I forgot we were playing them this week,” May said.

“Bro, I don’t even know who we have the next few weeks; the boys tell me who we’ve got.

“I don’t look too much into the future; I just stay present and go from there.”

The encounter may have snuck up on him, but the Wests Tigers forward doesn’t try to play down its significance. There’s the fact that his new club is trying to avoid a seventh consecutive loss, one that could effectively end their finals hopes and put them in danger of a fourth straight wooden spoon.

Terrell May is ready to face the Roosters for the first time.

Terrell May is ready to face the Roosters for the first time.Credit: Dion Georgopoulos

And then there’s the personal motivation to prove the Roosters got it wrong in their decision to cut him loose.

“Oh yeah, 100 per cent, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t,” he said.

“I don’t feel I need to prove myself to them – they’re going well, all the younger boys are coming up – I just feel like this is a game to step up and prove to them why they got rid of me was stupid.

“At the end of the day, I’m happy where I am. As much as I thought it was the worst thing that could happen to me, it’s been the biggest blessing.”

Wests Tigers prop Terrell May in action.

Wests Tigers prop Terrell May in action.Credit: Getty Images

May, who again undertook a three-day fast in the lead up to Sunday’s Allianz Stadium encounter, said he remains close with many of his ex-Roosters teammates.

“It’s going to be weird because I still talk to a lot of the boys there,” he said.

“I’ve still got a lot of love for the club and the boys there ... It will be weird, but it will be fun as well. Going back to Allianz and playing in front of the Roosters crowd, a lot of Roosters people have shown me mad love.

“They always message me and tell me how good I’m going and that they’re happy to see me.

“We’ll see what happens on game day. Obviously going back to the club you were at for three years, they gave me so much. I’m still going to have a lot of love for them.”

assault charges levelled against him were withdrawn.

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The former Panthers winger had spent time in rehab while suspended under the NRL’s no-fault stand-down policy. Terrell admitted the cloud over his brother had affected him on and off the field.

“At the start of the year, it was tough for me and him,” he said. “No one knew what was going on because he was in the psych ward and a retreat; it was hard only seeing him an hour a day.

“Only a few people would have known what our situation was, and it was tough seeing him the person he was, trying to tell our kids what is going on with uncle and dad.

“I struggled a bit at the start of the year. Maybe people thought I was going good, but off the field I was struggling a bit, with the situation going on with him.

“Now it’s amazing to see the 180 he has done, and he’s back to normal. The family is happy, he’s happy and, hopefully, he can continue on.”

May was a controversial omission from the NSW side for the start of the State of Origin series after a hot start to the season. The 26-year-old said he recently caught up with Blues coach Laurie Daley to discuss his Origin prospects.

“It was a good chat,” May said. “It was about what I need to improve to get into the Blues side.

“I won’t go too much into detail but, hopefully, I can take that on board and get into the training squad for the beginning of next year and then the team.

“To be honest, my focus at the moment is all Tigers.”

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