Steven May is arguably the primary reason that Melbourne won the premiership last year; sure, it was the midfield that turned the game in Q3 of the grand final but defence wins premierships and the Demons got to the granny primarily through the best defensive setup in the league, built around the bedrock of the ex-Sun. 2022 has seen him capitalise with his best fantasy numbers, especially in Supercoach where he is seriously contending for top six fantasy BAC. He is still a POD at this point of the season but that may change after the byes.
Steven May is arguably the primary reason that Melbourne won the premiership last year; sure, it was the midfield that turned the game in Q3 of the grand final but defence wins premierships and the Demons got to the granny primarily through the best defensive setup in the league, built around the bedrock of the ex-Sun. 2022 has seen him capitalise with his best fantasy numbers, especially in Supercoach where he is seriously contending for top six fantasy BAC. He is still a POD at this point of the season but that may change after the byes.
Yoga mat for May
A big off-season transfer from Gold Coast led to a false start for Steven May in year one at Melbourne, playing eight games due to groin and hamstring injuries. The booming left footer concentrated on defensive stopping when healthy, in a back line struggling for tall numbers. May is enjoying an untroubled preseason, crediting yoga as key to overcoming those soft tissue complaints. A dominant key defender at his best, the Dee has never translated this to essential fantasy selection on a consistent basis despite occasional big scores.
May flowers anew
To look at Steven May's fantasy average, you would think he was comfortably within the bounds of startability, as it is more than ten points inside the back baseline. However, more than half of his scores last season were below or at the baseline as his output is reliant on highly variable amounts of uncontested marks as he links up around the last line. He finished third for rebound 50s in the league, and a third of his disposals were rebounds. As he joins a new club, May's role will change markedly. We just don't know how that will play out: will he be the seventh man looking for the intercepts, or be asked to play traditional close-checking CHB? Do they prefer the ball in his hands on the rebound or someone like Michael Hibberd? Melbourne aren't going to need to overpossess the ball as much as the Suns do to slow down opposition momentum. Due to downside potential, avoid if you can.