Brother of Hull KR star makes NRL switch with John Bateman impact

The brother of Hull KR star Tyrone May has made a major NRL switch with his implications for the future of John Bateman.

Hull KR playmaker May is one of three brothers who play rugby league alongside NRL pair Terrell and Taylan, with the latter spotted donning a Robins’ shirt earlier this year as he travelled to England after being stood down by the NRL.

The middle brother, Terrell, recently featured for Samoa against England and is coming off the back of a career-best season. It was such an impressive season with Sydney Roosters that the forward was named as the 14th man or ‘Impact Player’ to the NRL Dream Team earlier this year.

Therefore it came as a major surprise when just a month later, Terrell had been told that his services with the Roosters were no longer required. Reports would later emerge Down Under that there was concern among the club’s higher-ups about May’s attitude to rugby league, something that had been picked up on in various media interviews.

Now, 18 days after being told he could leave and Terrell May has found a new NRL club in a move that looks set to impact England star John Bateman heavily.

Hull KR star’s brother makes move to potentially seal John Bateman’s fate

May has signed a deal three-year deal with Wests Tigers that is believed to be worth around $2 million taking the spend of Benji Marshall’s side through the roof.

That comes after the club signed Jarome Luai to a monster deal and The Daily Telegraph Down Under are reporting that Wests’ signing spree is ‘tipped to be worth in the vicinity of $4 million a season’.

Given that Wests were trying to offload players to help clear their books, it’s a major contradiction to sign Terrell May but he is perhaps just too good of a player to pass up on.

It’s also a move that seems to seal the fate of John Bateman who has been embroiled in a lengthy transfer saga after a reported fall-out with head coach Benji Marshall earlier in the season. That led to him being loaned to Warrington Wolves but the Tigers are still reportedly wanting the Englishman off their books.

Recently, the Rugby League Players Association had to intervene to back Bateman over his belief that he did not have to return until after Christmas for the pre-season training, whilst leading journalist Michael Carayannis labelled the situation as ‘messy’.

He told SEN Radio: “The Tigers don’t want John Bateman to return and Bateman doesn’t particularly want to return to the club.

“Bateman has that link with Manly but the Sea Eagles have to move a player to accommodate him and they haven’t been able to do that.

“It’s a delicate situation because neither party wants to be aligned with each other next season.”

Bateman had told Serious About RL of his intent to return to the club and see out the remaining two years on his deal but with Wests now splashing the cash on Terrell May, it’s hard to see how the Englishman’s wages fit into their salary cap structure.