TYRONE May could be at the centre of something Biblical if Hull KR make it to the Grand Final.
And he revealed reading the word of the Lord is helping him keep his focus, by taking his mind off rugby league.
Although, there is nothing in the Scripture that covers no longer wanting to strangle now team-mate Mikey Lewis!
May has held his hands up to straying in the past – he admitted to SunSport he was to blame for the social media post that saw him sacked by NRL side Penrith and end up in Super League.
He also knew only he can put things right and as he scours the Book of Proverbs, ‘the one who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.’
May revealed: “I read and try to escape rugby league through that reality. It’s all about perspective and I try not to indulge my whole life into the sport.
“I understand that I’m a player first and foremost, that’s my job, but when I’m away from it I do like to get away from it and read.
“I’m reading Proverbs at the moment. It’s a good way to get your imagination going and think about other things and circumstances.
“But I relate a lot of my reading back to rugby league. Things like strategy and how I carry myself throughout the day. A lot of that is based around life but it does help with my game as well.
“Since I came over here, I’ve also liked to travel. Any time I can, I get away and I go for walks to be around nature.”
May’s link with Lewis has been a big part of Hull KR’s rise to the top in 2024, a rise that can still end with silverware.
Defeat Warrington tonight and Willie Peters’ men will be 80 minutes from immortality – some distance from one wanting to throttle the other.
But to quote another verse from Proverbs, ‘Iron sharpens iron, and one person sharpens another.’
May, 28, who came in from Catalans for this season, added: “Little Mikey’s been outstanding – last year, I wanted to strangle him when I played against him and a lot of clubs feel that way!
“But when you play alongside him, he’s pretty electric. He’s someone you want to put your arm around and look after.
“He gets under the skin of the opposition and that’s when he’s at his best. He got under mine last year and I wasn’t happy about it.
“However, we’ve formed a good partnership this year and since I walked through the door, he’s been nothing but welcoming. Everyone here has.
“You get different personas on and off the pitch everywhere. You see a lot of players on the pitch that opposition teams and fans don’t like.
“I played alongside Sam Tomkins, who’d go somewhere every week and fans would have the same chant for him. Even I started singing along sometimes!
“But off the field, Sam is a champion bloke. When you cross that white line, you turn into someone different, you change your mentality.
“If he wasn’t on the shortlist for Man of Steel, something was going on. Now, hopefully, he can get that award.”
