NRL player Taylan May might be a coward, or he may have acted in a cowardly manner when he earned his nomination for The Fronwlow Medal.
The Frownlow Medal is awarded to the player whose off-field demeanour epitomises the values of the modern-day footballer and draws attention to the status of footballers as role models to young Australians. It covers Australia’s four major football codes; the National Rugby League (NRL), Australian Football League (AFL), the A-League (Football) and Rugby Union’s Super Rugby competition. NRL player Shaun Kenny-Dowall won the inaugural medal in 2015, while NRL star Jarryd Hayne is the most recent recipient.
If May is a coward, it means he does this type of thing on a regular basis, and that it is an integral part of his character. However, if he is cowardly, it means he acted this way on one occasion. This is an important distinction to make because it has a huge bearing on whether or not he wins The Fronwlow Medal this year.
The Penrith winger was nominated early in 2022, and was recently found guilty of assault occasioning bodily harm. His actions were labelled “reprehensible” and “cowardly” and he was ordered him to pay $1000 in compensation to the victim and a $1000 fine. He did not have a conviction recorded against him.
May was not stood down by the Panthers following the incident or during the court proceedings, and it is not known whether he will miss any games during the finals series. He has been rested for the upcoming game, which is the last of the regular season.
May was found guilty of assaulting a young fan while celebrating the 2021 grand final win in Queensland. He reportedly reacted to a young fan who had filmed teammate Nathan Cleary. Cleary wanted the video deleted and during the argument May grabbed the man by the collar of his shirt and pulled him to the ground. The man struck his head on the floor during the altercation and suffered a sprained neck.
Somewhat ironically, May was in the presence of his brother Tyrone, who was kicked out of the NRL after being found guilty of distributing a sex tape without the woman’s permission, and earned his own Frownlow nomination. It seems private videos on mobile phones are still a touchy subject for the May brothers.
Taylan himself might want to clarify the wording of his actions, because the last thing a rugby league player can afford to be is a coward.
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The Frownlow Medal 