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Coach Laurie Daley names potential Barnett replacements for Blues
Sam Kosack • June 3rd, 2025 8:00 am
Laurie Daley has confirmed he will consider handing Terrell May his Origin debut in Game II as he seeks a replacement for the injured Mitch Barnett.
Asked on SEN 1170 Sportsday about his options to fill the void left by Barnett, Daley named May as a potential candidate, as well as Rabbitohs’ prop Keaon Koloamatangi, former NSW captain Jake Trbojevic, and Storm prop Stefano Utoikamanu, who was on standby for Payne Haas in Game I.
May was controversially left out of the Blues squad in Game I, with Daley instead opting for Bulldogs’ prop Max King.
However, Warriors’ co-captain Mitch Barnett suffered a season-ending ACL rupture during his team’s Round 13 clash with the Rabbitohs which has seen the door re-opened for May to potentially debut in Perth.
“You’ve got Terrell May there who has been playing some really good football this year for the Tigers,” Daley admitted when asked about possible replacements for Barnett.
“We had Stefano (Utoikamanu) in camp… Stefano was going to come in if Payne (Haas) didn't come up so he's obviously one of the front runners.
“Keaon Koloamatangi’s been excellent the last few weeks. He's another one we're looking at.
“Jake (Trbojevic) hasn't played football, but we're hoping he may be able to get some football this weekend and if he does, then I'm sure that a guy of his experience and leadership will come up in conversations as well.”
May's move to the Wests Tigers during the off-season has seen him play bigger minutes and average 40 tackles, 172 metres, and 3 offloads a game to be sitting fourth in the Dally Ms as it went behind closed doors.
Daley said the injured Barnett would be a massive loss for the Blues after a phenomenal performance in Game I.
“I think some of the work that Mitch (Barnett) did… when you go back and review the tape, some of the things you miss on game night,” Daley said.
“When you go back and analyze it, you just look at what he provided for the team. He was great and that to me is where it starts upfront, isn't it?
“You've got to be able to sort of get a bit of a platform there. Obviously Mitch won't be there in game two or game three, so that's a big blow for us.”
When teams were announced for Game I, Daley revealed May was overlooked purely because he believed other players were playing better than him.
“I think the others are playing better than Terrell May – all the things I’m looking for as a player," Daley said last week.
"Max King is playing outstanding. Terrell’s playing great but he needs to keep knocking on the door, his time will come at some stage.”
Daley denied speculation at the time that May had been overlooked for comments he made during a Twitch stream, where he was asked what he thought his chances were of being selected.
May has since apologised for these comments, vowing to re-earn the Blues trust.
"I never should have said that. That's on me. Obviously I was joking, but no one really knows me personally, so I shouldn't assume people are gonna know me,” May said.
"I wish I could take that back, but I can't. At the end of the day, that's on me.
"Now I gotta live with it. I'm just gonna keep grinding to earn their trust."
