Gold Coast brings in Werribee defender as safety net for May

GOLD Coast will sign Werribee intercept defender Sam Collins as their third state league player despite preparing to keep Steven May for a final season.

The Suns are prepared to trade May for the No.5 selection in the next three days but an impasse over deals for Lachie Neale and Jesse Hogan means that deal is in jeopardy.

May would prefer to be traded to Melbourne in coming days but accepts that if the Demons cannot come up with an early pick, there is no way the Suns will trade him.

Instead, he would have to earn his free-agent rights by playing out a final year — most likely not as captain — with the Suns and maintain a mature attitude to his impending departure.

Instead of declaring he is desperate to leave the Suns while under contract, May has stayed quiet while his management has declared his intent to the club’s hierarchy in case he has to remain.

The Suns had investigated 194cm defender Collins as a replacement should May leave but are now expected to sign him regardless of that trade.

The 24-year-old played 14 games for Fremantle then was delisted at the end of 2017.

He will join Werribee teammate and 190cm forward Josh Corbett, the VFL’s Fothergill Medallist this year, and West Adelaide swingman Chris Burgess as state league signings for the Suns, who will in coming days trade away pacy midfielder Aaron Hall (North Melbourne), No.5 draft pick Kade Kolodjashnij (Melbourne) and. Jack Scrimshaw (Hawthorn).