Does Taylan May’s deferred punishment “open a can of worms” for the NRL?
The NRL’s announcement on Tuesday morning to defer Taylan May’s two-game suspension to the start of 2023 has been questioned by many.
May was found guilty of assault occasioning bodily harm after an incident with a fan on the Sunshine Coast, just days after the Panthers won the NRL Grand Final in 2021.
Speaking on SEN’s The Run Home, Joel Caine and Bryan Fletcher noted that the decision from the NRL may set an ugly precedent.
See the transcript between the two below
Caine: “I just find this funny, just as far as setting a precedent goes, Bryan,” he said on SEN 1170 The Run Home.
Fletcher: “I would think they could have just waited a couple of weeks and say we are doing our own investigating, if you’re gonna come out now, it’s (the suspension) got to be now in the next two games.”
Caine: “The thing is for me, I reckon you get out of it better, see Penrith still have a life, if Penrith lose they are still alive, as opposed to giving him two next year, just give him one game with the fine.
Caine: “Then there’s no problem and precedent set, I think everyone including Taylan May would be relieved, in fact one game in a final is worth more than two premiership games.”
Fletcher: “I thought they could have just waited, because no one is asking anything and then as soon they (Penrith) go out, then they release it, but I like your idea better just give him one game.”
Caine: “Does this open a can of worms? Say, for example, someone cops a week this round, can they go and try to defer our sentence for next year, is that on the table now?”
Fletcher: “Maybe it’s because it was an off-field incident, I can see why they’ve had to act now because it was (the sentence) on the 31st of August, but Parramatta supporters would be saying, he shouldn’t be playing.”
May is currently listed to start on the wing for the Panthers in the first qualifying semi-final this Friday against the Eels.