Bulldogs in lead to pry young enforcer Terrell May from Roosters

Breakout young forward Terrell May looks bound for Canterbury and the Bulldogs pack after being told by the Sydney Roosters he was surplus to requirements earlier this year.

The Roosters have told May he won’t get as many chances to play in 2024 and then potentially beyond that after the club signed Spencer Leniu for around $525,000-a-season and Canterbury look poised to take full advantage of the situation. The Bulldogs want to plug him straight into the team’s developing forward pack in 12 months.

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Several NRL clubs are interested in the 24-year-old, whose brothers Taylan and Tyrone are playing for Penrith and Hull KR respectively, but his relationship with Cameron Ciraldo is a big tipping point.

May was originally a Panthers junior and worked with Ciraldo in his early playing days.

He debuted for the Roosters last season after joining the tricolours at the start of the 2022 NRL season—losing to the Panthers in his first game, funnily enough—and has since gone on to play 26 games for the club, including 17 this year. He has one more year on his current Sydney deal before he becomes a free agent again.

Sydney does want to keep May in the rotation if they can, but pay is the biggest problem; they would have to bump down May’s pay packet, while the Bulldogs want to offer him an upgraded deal.