Newcastle’s Tom May has spoken of
fulfilling a lifetime ambition to play in France’s Top 14 following
confirmation of his summer move to Toulon.
“It’s something that my
wife and I have always wanted to have a go at, and to get an offer like this
at 30 years of age, when I am pushing on a bit, I knew that offer was never
going to come again,” he said.
May admitted that it had been a tough
call to leave the north-east club after 10 years but hoped that supporters
would understand him seizing the opportunity to play in France despite have
a year left on his contract.
“I have a couple of years in France to
look forward to, and if there is a place for me after that then I would
dearly love to come back to Newcastle,” he added.
The versatile back will make his
Newcastle farewell against Harlequins on Saturday, despite nursing a broken
finger. “I’m determined to play against Harlequins, and to be honest they’d
have to carry me away in a body bag to get me off that field in my last game
for the club.”
That sort of commitment will be
welcomed down in Toulon next season, where May is expected to be joined by
his erstwhile club colleague Jonny Wilkinson as Philippe Saint-Andre
continues to mould a new-look squad.
Top 14 Table
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Transfers
Saracens veteran Kris Chesney,
Leinster’s Argentine fly-half Felipe Contepomi and Cardiff Blues centre
Jamie Robinson have all agreed to join in recent weeks, strengthening a
squad that already features the likes of Joe Van Niekerk, Jerry Collins,
Sonny Bill Williams and player-coach Tana Umaga.
They have been battling the prospect of
relegation all season but finally looked to have secured the Top 14 status
last weekend when they pulled off a remarkable 14-6 home win against
defending champions Stade Toulousain.
The capture of May won’t grab the
global headlines that will greet Wilkinson’s signing but Saint-Andre knows
that the multi-skilled back brings a wealth of experience to his squad.
May has been playing fly-half in Wilkinson’s injury enforced absence and won
February’s Guinness Premiership Player of the Month award as he helped ease
the Falcons clear of their own relegation worries.
“This opportunity has arisen quite
unexpectedly over the past few months, and I would like to stress that my
decision to leave Newcastle in no way reflects the esteem in which I hold
the club, the players or the management,” said May.
He departs after playing 264 games for
Newcastle, accumulating more than 500 points.
May’s exit is the latest in an ongoing
reshuffle at Newcastle, with Wilkinson and England centre Jamie Noon also
heading to France in the summer – the latter to Brive.
